“The frugal times forced [British Air] to focus on being profitable rather than big.” —Economist, 04.28.07
Other Related/Recent:
“Despite a decade of banking mergers, there is no evidence that big banks are any more efficient or profitable than their smaller rivals.”—Financial Times, on possible Barclays-ABN Amro merger (subscription required)
“When it comes to asking the stock market whether bigger banks are better, the current answer is a resounding ‘no.'”—Citigroup analysis, 2006
Dick Kovacevich, Wells Fargo: “You don’t get better by being bigger. You get worse.”
NB: Saving grace, per TP, is that Royal Bank of Scotland counteroffer will likely result in breaking up ABN Amro.
#1: Duh.
#2: So why do we keep doing the same stupid stuff over and over and over?