Rational Conduct

Yesterday Forbes ran a truly fascinating story about a college drop out turned Texas banker named Andrew Beal that puts a gigantic smile from ear to ear on this capitalist’s face.  From 2004 to 2007 Beal saw the irrationality going on in the marketplace and hunkered down, shrank his balance sheet, and laid most of his employees off.  All the while being ridiculed by other bankers, his board members, employees, credit rating agencies, and government regulators.  Yes, the same government regulators who ignored the insane goings ons that went on at Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Citigroup, Lehman, Bear Sterns, AIG, BoA, Merill Lynch, ad nauseum, were nagging the lone banker making intelligent business decisions.

Now after many years of belt tightening and playing it smart, despite being called insane, he is buying up assets on fractions of the dollar that were only a couple years ago being bought for a premium.  With an ever expanding balance sheet he has now had doubled his employee workforce and plans to expand even more recognizing the firesales are far from over.  It just goes to show there are people out there who made the right choices and are actually hiring.  These are the people who should be working at building this economy’s foundations, but instead are being crowded out by government regulators and companies on the government dole.

But, Mr. Beal is still managing to expand his business and did I mention he’s doing it without a dime of help from the government?  Yep, the true sentiment of the free-market entrepreneur.  While all the tax eaters are out and about sucking up all of someone else’s money they can, he’s out there making the buys legitimately and using his own capital to do so.  Along the way he’s making all the government enemies he can.  Good on him.

There are too many juicy quotes to add here, so read the entire story as it’s well worth the read.