Passenger Trains > California HSR - additional $600M bonds sold

The Ventura County (CA) Star ran an article on Wednesday 3/27/19 mentioning that $600M of California HSR bonds were sold this past week.  They were purchaed by Wells Fargo and Jefferies LLC, an investment bank.
The article also rehashed the recent news about the challenges facing high speed rail, including the questions about what happens next given the funding shortfall.  There were no other specific details; the next update on 'where they are going forward' is scheduled to be submitted by the governor to the state legislature by May 1.

Man, talk about a joke from the getgo and come May it'll prove to still be a joke!

What is "a joke" about Wells Fargo buying into California's future which it has been doing since 1852s with great success?



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 03/30/19 16:40 by RRBaron.

RRBaron Wrote:
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> What is "a joke" about Wells Fargo buying into
> California's future which it has been doing since
> 1852s with great success?

Maybe Wells Fargo will successfully create a "fake train" without the voter's consent, to make up for the fact that they got caught creating fake accounts without customers' consent?

While Jeffries LLC has an interesting (and somewhat scandolous) history, its current iteration seems relatively clean, but they tend to go for high yield securities, which hints that the CA HSR bonds might be junk grade?

So far, ProAmtrak has been correct regarding the CA HSR "pipe dream."

cchan006 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> RRBaron Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > What is "a joke" about Wells Fargo buying into
> > California's future which it has been doing
> since
> > 1852s with great success?
>
> Maybe Wells Fargo will successfully create a "fake
> train" without the voter's consent, to make up for
> the fact that they got caught creating fake
> accounts without customers' consent?
>
> While Jeffries LLC has an interesting (and
> somewhat scandolous) history, its current
> iteration seems relatively clean, but they tend to
> go for high yield securities, which hints that the
> CA HSR bonds might be junk grade?
>
> So far, ProAmtrak has been correct regarding the
> CA HSR "pipe dream."
We just finished a 3 month ordeal dealing with Wells Fargo as we were co-signing a mortgage for a family member—- it was a nightmare of redundancy, duplication, multiple copies of multiple totally unnecessary lengthy documents—- whole forests were demolished in pursuit of what should have been a simple transaction—- and the incompetence of the people we encountered as we struggled up their food chain was astounding. Buying into the CAHSR doesnt surprise me. Jeez. Incredible.
C
PS—because one of their screw ups was getting title company and mortgage person in sync for meeting, they ended up sending a notary to our house where we signed triplicate copies of at least 30, if not more, documents, one if which attested to my certifying that I indeed was a white female. Migwad.
C

Carol Voss
Bakersfield, CA



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 03/30/19 19:49 by CarolVoss.

Wells Fargo is becoming a poster child for a company too complicated and filled with redundant process to even reform itself.

The recent revelation that the chairs of the Federal Reserve, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corpoation told the WFC Board that its CEO is not competent to run the bank was astonishing. As is the derivative thought that the Board isn't competent to oversee the CEO.  CEO Sloan announced his retirement this week.

General obligation bonds with maturities of ten years or less. Talk is that the buyers buy them to resell.

Bonds are not my cup of tea, but I guess the perception is that they are sufficiently safe if you believe California is going to hold it together for the next ten years.

These bonds should carry California's GO bond rating.   Jeffries is not a usual wholesaler of bonds,  so probably going into one of their in house bond funds.  As far as Wells Fargo,  they're probably trying to show they're good CA citizens,  after screwing people for years.  Most retail banks will participate in GO bond offerings,  especially if they have a branch in the locality issuing the bonds.  Back in the day of required competitive bond offerings in California,  Bank of America bid on every school district bond offered.  If they really wanted the issue, they were competitive;  if not they submitted a high bid but could say they supported community X.  The best story about BofA was in the mid-1970s when the Isla Vista Park District offered a GO bond issue.  IV is the location of UC Santa Barbara and during the Vietnam years,  the local BofA branch had been torched a couple of times.  The District wanted to forbid a bid from BofA but couldn't based on the bond law.   So...BofA put in a bid at an interest rate that came in next to last,  but could then advertise that, no matter what,  they backed IV.  Everyone was happy with the result.