Kevin, in a word, ugh. Yes, you read it right (but, like your commenter Cliff, I’d be skeptical that the “real” number is as high as all that), but, hey, no reason to worry. The transactions involve “high-quality” assets. What could go wrong?
I’m a bit pressed this afternoon, so (like your commenter Oilwatcher) I turned to the ever grim Zero Hedge, confident that “Tyler Durden” there would have a quick, suitably bleak explanation for what has been going on. And so he did. Mr. Durden reckons that this move is designed to reassure the folks on the other side of those derivative contracts that they have have a stronger counterparty than Bank of America Corp. Check out what Durden has to say for yourself, but his explanation looks pretty plausible to me.