By Rima Abdelkader

One September morning when Waleed Shoukry was trading securities at Merrill Lynch on Wall Street, he and his colleagues were forced to evacuate the building.  We were closely packed together, Shoukry said, when he and his colleagues saw the second plane hit.  Seven years later and four days after the World Trade Center attacks, the Merrill trader undertook another unexpected event that will soon be added to the history books: Bank of America acquired his firm.  “If the synergies do not work, it could potentially create more havoc in the industry,” he said.  Though he admitted that his experience in the current financial situation does not compare to the former.

I sat down with Shoukry and he shared his thoughts on the situation on Wall Street, how this is affecting the American taxpayer, the trader and what this all means.
Mortage-backed derivatives

Shoukry explains mortgage-backed derivatives:

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Taxpayer Impact

Shoukry opines on the potential impact of the financial crisis on the American taxpayer:

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Government Bailout

Shoukry opines on whether the government “bailout” or “rescue” package will solve the financial crisis:

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Executive Pay Packages

Shoukry speaks on executive pay packages when a firm fails:

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Trader Impact

Shoukry opines on the impact of the financial crisis on traders:

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Lesson Learned

Shoukry shares his final thoughts on the financial crisis:

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Shoukry said there could be “high demand for little supply of job opportunities.”   “There’s always going to be some sort of attrition, some sort of slimming of the work force whether it is front office, middle office or back office” when one American firm acquires another, he said.

Right now, Shoukry said it is “a wait-and-see game” around the Merrill water cooler.

Following my interview with Shoukry, I interviewed a Citgroup executive for his thoughts on whether he had noticed any impact of the financial situation on business students.

Student Impact

Executive MBA student at the University of Pennsylvania, Mohamed Khalil, also executive at Citigroup, one of the major financial institutions that is among the few survivors in this U.S. financial crisis, opines on the impact of the financial crisis on business students:

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Khalil on the phone with a colleague:

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What are your thoughts on the current financial situation?  Where do you stand on the U.S. and global financial situation?  What are your thoughts on what Shoukry and/or Khalil said?