Why a “bad bank” is a bad idea

"To summarize. Our biggest financial companies (including GE) list about $10 trillion worth of assets on their balance sheets in total. But those assets aren’t actually worth $10 trillion, they’re probably worth $8-$9 trillion. At the same time, the banks have total common equity on the order of $250 billion, not nearly enough to absorb $1-$2 trillion worth of losses. If forced to take those losses, they would go the way of Lehman: out the door feet first. All of them would."