Mark To Market Coming Back To The Spotlight?
Mark to market was removed from the spotlight for 1-2 weeks while the rating agencies, banker compensation, etc. were the topics du jour.
Well, mark to market is back–
Obviously, these are triggered by events:
The SEC hosts its first roundtable on Mark-to-Market financial accounting today. You can take a peek at the exciting agenda here.
http://ftalphaville.ft.com/blog/2008/10/29/17592/asymmetrical-accounting/
The key issues you need to know here are:
Mark to market is built on top of efficient market hypothesis.
There are assets out there that are not efficiently priced, including CDOs. I hate to break it to you but not all CDOs deserve to be priced at where they are right now.