Euro collapse - the state of play this Saturday morning & tips on dodgy banks!

The Irish Times has a good summary of the present differences and crisis points ahead of the Sarkozy/Merkel meeting tomorrow evening, linked here. Some quotes for a quick update:

The chancellor says money from the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) should be deployed only as a last resort, after private and government sources of capital are expired.

Mr Sarkozy, fearful that state recapitalisations could threaten France’s AAA credit rating, wants the right to deploy EFSF aid quicker.

The disagreement about when to use the EFSF, highlights the fact that the two main leaders of the Euro Group have still not grasped the full seriousness of the situation, itself brought into sharp relief by the Fitch downgrading last evening of Spain and Italy. The total funds available for dispersal under the EFSF remain at only €440 billion, a tiny portion of the shortfall now looming over the comparatively giant economies of Italy and Spain as compared to Greece, Ireland and Portugal!

The seriousness of the coming disaster is well illustrated by the morning Daily Telegraph in the UK, it providing a guide as to the likliehood, and how to spot, if your own British bank seems about to fail, linked here.