Matt Levine’s Money Stuff: Barclays Sold Too Many Notes

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If you are a high-powered trader at a big investment bank, two things that might happen are:

1. You might make $600 million for your bank this year, or

• 2. You might lose $600 million for your bank this year.

Neither is very likely, particularly not in this more boring post-crisis world, but either is possible. If you make $600 million that’s good and you’ll get a huge bonus. If you lose $600 million that’s bad and you’ll probably get fired, though it depends, and anyway you’ll have a cool war story that will quickly get you another big job ...