For someone who has any belief in the long term viability of the banking system, has there ever been a better time to buy shares in major banks?  With many paying a dividend of around 10% a year, the income alone represents a reasonable investment but when you add in the prospect of capital growth they must make a tempting buy for some.

Granted, it does not pay to act without caution or reasoning and, as recent events have shown, banking is not without its risks for share owners.  But, that said, banks have been hit by crises before, seemingly every ten years, or so and, whilst this crisis looks bad, is it any worse than the problems associated with the Russian Debt default, the collapse of the Savings and Loans institutions in the United States or the Latin American debt defaults?  Crises come and go, it seems, each on a little different from the last, but our need for banks carries on undiminished.

It also appears, if history is any indication, that banks recover from crises, as does the rest of the financial system.  Help is often required from Central Banks but, without sounding complacent, problems disappear.  They may not be everyone’s cup of tea but you can be certain that some will make money out of these travails.