Ármann hittir naglann á höfuðið

Almenningur sér nú bankamenn fyrir sér sem heimska, óheiðarlega og yfirborgaða áhættufíkla sem ætti að setja í fangelsi fyrir þau stórfenglegu skemmdarverk sem þeir unnu.

Þetta segir Ármann Þorvaldsson, í viðtali við The Guardian. Sagt er frá þessu Pressunni, undir fyrirsögninni: "Ármann Þorvaldsson: Starfsfólk banka ekki yfirborgaðir heimskir áhættufíklar sem læsa á inni". Ég skil raunar ekki hvaðan Pressan fær þessa fyrirsögn, Ármann er svo sem ekkert beinlínis að rengja þennan dóm, en segir að að það sé "ekki þægilegt að láta líta svoleiðis á sig".

Nei, skiljanlega er það ekki. Mér skilst á bókadómum að hann staðfesti í bók sinni að heilmikið sé til í þessum dómi almennings. Hef sjálfur ekki lesið hana, en þetta má lesa í Guardian viðtalinu:

"These were businesses that were built from almost nothing over a 15-year period. They were the result of a lot of hard work by talented people. The average man or woman on the street now thinks every banker is stupid, dishonest and overpaid, a risk junkie who should go to jail for the colossal vandalism we've caused. Being perceived like that doesn't feel great."

Peppered with anecdotes illustrating the lifestyle excesses that mirrored Kaupthing's meteoric rise from a small firm in Iceland's tiny island economy to a significant European player, it is hard to see how Thorvaldsson hopes his book's candour will win over hostile critics.

Episodes that he recalls include arm-wrestling contests and nightclub excursions during a lavish Icelandic fishing trip for the KSF client Gordon Ramsay; hiring Tom Jones to sing at a private party for 200 guests at the Natural History Museum; and an extravagant St Tropez lunch where a waiter dressed as Spider-Man sprayed the contents of a Melchizedek – a 30-litre champagne bottle – over guests including a Russian billionaire sat on a throne and the former chairman of one of the UK's largest banks.

During the Monaco grand prix, Thorvaldsson recalls, "we knew so many people that we hopped from one yacht to another", name-dropping the retail entrepreneurs Mike Ashley and Sir Tom Hunter, property developers the Candy Brothers and currency trader Joe Lewis – all of whom became clients.

"We socialised and networked at high-profile events at venues like Elton John's home, the Winter Palace in St Petersburg and Hampton Court Palace … I sat at tables with Elle McPherson and Sting, and stood at urinals with Rod Stewart and Hugh Grant on either side of me."

Forvitnilegt að sjá í hvað peningarnir fóru sem bankarnir soguðu til sín.