Bank bail-out has 'stabilised' US - Paulson

Speaking in Washington overnight, the Treasury Secretary says using the $700bn bank bail-out package to purchase equity directly in institutions has proved to be the "fastest and most productive" way of easing the current financial chaos. The US Government had intended to use the bail-out package to take illiquid mortgage-related assets off bank balance sheets. However, Paulson says as Congress considered the legislation, market conditions "worsened considerably". "It was clear to me by the time the bill was signed on October 3rd that we needed to act quickly and forcefully, and that pu...