The Financial Year-2008-2009 in retrospect

Today the financial year 2008-2009 comes to an end. This was the most difficult year at least in my banking career and resulted in a lot of changes both positive and not so positive both in personal and professional lives of bankers across. I try and recollect some of the things that happened in this financial year.

• Recession became the key word to be used in every party/meeting/discussion.
  Most of the professionals became experts in the macro economics of not just the country but globally.
• People reconciled to the fact that they will not get increments and bonus, no one cribbed when the banks/companies declared that they will not pay anything this year, owing to the recession. Everyone, on the contrary was happy that they are still on the company role.
  The hardest impact came when no mutual fund gave diaries/calendars on Diwali and New Year and no-one even asked them.
• Husbands and boyfriends saved a lot of money claiming to be victims of the global recession.
• The household savings increased as the fear of job-cuts loomed large.
• Men started spending more quality time at home, there was nothing to watch on CNBC and going out was expensive. Fights over the remote were less and women-folk were happy to watch their choices on TV.
• Ladies had to sharpen the culinary skills, not used for years now, as the family dinners at posh restaurants came down sharply.
• Suddenly every ‘sale’ mattered. Everyone wanted to buy things in one sale or the other. No one wanted to miss this great opportunity to save money. A weird example of company offers ‘buy one-get three free’ ‘buy two get 3 free’ etc.
• Even pubs and bars have been having strange schemes to encourage recession drinking.
• Business became even more difficult. Third party became zero and bottom lines were hit heavily.
• Good old banking that had Current and Savings accounts suddenly became popular. Something that made every seasoned banker happy. Bankers became less of equity brokers but unfortunately became more of Life Insurance sales guys since that was the only source of quick revenue.
• Everyone just started wondering who is next, more rumours circulated the market than even before.
• People who were working in the wrong industry were shown the way-out by their bosses. This will in turn help them in finding their calling in life.
• Indian banking system came out to be better and more robust than banking sytems of the so called advanced nations of the world.
• Business news channels and the technical and fundamental analysts who apparently were the only people other than god almighty to know how the stock market shall move made a fool of themselves and were last found looking for alternate professions.
• Suddenly loans and credit cards were out and usage of debit cards increased. Credit card companies that were reckless in issuance of cards to every Amar, Akbar and Anthony showed some restraint.
• Suddenly everyone was hit by recession, if you were not crying about it, people concluded that you definitely had a clandestine source of income. Even my presswala was hit by recession and started asking for advance more often.
• Real Estate prices saw a correction and what a correction it was, suddenly the broker turned builders were on the verge of collapse and the neighborhood broker who in wake of 5 years started traveling in Mercedes from Maruti was cut down to size. Properties in a godforsaken part of NCR that was selling at atrociously high prices was somewhat regularized. The great Indian real estate tamasha seemed to end.
  
  Thus ended this financial year that caused more pain and suffering in the financial world than any that we have seen in the recent past. It had its own gains and in the longer run will result in settling down of the economies of the world, made people more financially responsible and for an economy on the path of development, will be helpful in the longer run.
  
  Good bye 2008-2009