US plans to clean up finance system

The federal government, acknowledging the need to take a more comprehensive approach to the financial crisis, is working on a sweeping series of programs that would represent perhaps the biggest intervention in financial markets since the 1930s.

At the center of the potential plan is a mechanism that would take bad assets off the balance sheets of financial companies, according to people familiar with the matter, a device that echoes similar moves taken in past financial crises. It's size could reach hundreds of billions of dollars, one person said.

WSJ Logo
The Worst Performer in Billionaires’ Portfolios? Trophy Art.External link

The Worst Performer in Billionaires’ Portfolios? Trophy Art.