The big planned $100 billion “Super Fund” being put together by Citigroup (NYSE: C), JP Morgan (NYSE: JPM) and Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) may only raise half of its goal. The reason appears to be that the institutions that should have needed the money have found other ways to handle their problems.

As The Wall Street Journal points out: “In some cases, the SIVs are trying to solve their own problems. final week, HSBC (NYSE:HBC) of the United Kingdom became the first bank to bail out its own funds.”

Some of the mortgage-based securities in the SIVs have lost so much of their value that there are very few buyers for those assets, at least at prices shut to their original values. SIVs that borrowed money to buy assets now face the need to repay their loans, but only a fire sale would bring in money. And with asset values

down, there is no guarantee that the SIVs can raise adequate cash to meet their debt obligations.

The “Super Fund” is being set up to give short-term loans to SIVs to avoid the “fire sale” scenario. But whether the funds are finding a way around their problems, the new lending pool may not be essential.

All of that makes the “Super Fund” seem more like the way the press and some analysts have portrayed it — a bailout for Citigroup, which has a large obligation to affiliated SIVs and is already hurt by huge write-offs.

Perhaps once the fund is in place, Citi will be the only borrower. Since it is one of the participants in the “Super Fund,” it can loan the money to itself.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

Original post by Douglas McIntyre

refinance child support auto insurance money credit real estate credit card law home equity debt