Urquhart Stewart blasts regulators after "best of all evils" HBOS takeover

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Lloyds TSB's takeover of HBOS represents a "best of all evils", though should at least be a base for greater market stability, according to Seven Investment Management's Justin Urquhart Stewart.

Urquhart Stewart said this merger seemed "inevitable" after markets turned against HBOS, and he accused speculators of hunting down the bank like a "lame animal". He also blamed regulators, stressing that aggressive short selling made matters worse. "In my view the market yesterday was an unstable market that should have been stopped," he said. While he believes we will now see greater market stability, Urquhart Stewart was quick to point out that merger would also bring about less desirable consequences. "It marches straight through any commission anti-monopoly rules and means the...

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