Prime Risk (1985)

Mark DeFrain: Federal Reserve Assistant

Quotes 

• Federal Reserve Executive : London, West Germany, France, all the European markets. Somehow the Saudis were also convinced...

  Paul Minsky : Saudi markets?

  Federal Reserve Executive : Don't ask me how. It's beginning a snowball effect across the country. We've got a liquidity crisis you wouldn't believe! Chase Manhattan's prime lending rate is already at 20%!

  Paul Minsky : *Twenty* percent? It was 15 a half-hour ago!

  Federal Reserve Assistant : Janet, I gotta have your authorization right here.

  Federal Reserve Executive : What am I signing here?

  Federal Reserve Assistant : I don't know.

  Paul Minsky : So what does the cash reserve situation look like?

  Federal Reserve Executive : We store approximately $500 billion in emergency cash. And that was gone in the first hour.

  Paul Minsky : I can't believe this!

  Federal Reserve Executive : This screen over here gives us the current picture... of the Reserve's deposits. We're 950 billion dollars short right now.

  Paul Minsky : [indicating pink line over red zone]  So what does this line represent?

  Federal Reserve Executive : One *trillion* dollar deficit. Give me a graphic expansion on that please, Ed. That level has been determined as *rock bottom*. Go under this line, and this glorious country we call America will be completely bankrupt.