The former majority owner of Landsbanki (parent to Icesave), West Ham and Samson holding has filed for bankruptcy. This is by far the biggest of its kind in the history of Iceland, just over 95 billion ISK, almost 500 million pounds. His assets have as good as disappeared since the fall of the banks last year. In 2007 Gudmundsson, who was born in 1941, was considered the richest man in Iceland and was on the top 800 list of the richest men in the world according to Forbes. Gudmundsson’s bankruptcy is bigger than Kevin Maxwell’s, son of Robert Maxwell, Britain’s biggest bankrupt.
Comments are closed.
Wonder what Sir EURO said normally he is fairly FUNNY
To Bjarni
No offence taken – just a little concerned about the forum editorial parameters following Jarretts statement. However, I am reassured by the comment of Alex.
Perhaps the Hitler/Nazi theme made me feel a little uncomfortable – or perhaps I was surprised, given your previous postings – to learn that you also have a sense of humour! :)
To Terry:
>>>>Bjarni – I am a little disappointed – especially given your earlier comment
Sorry if I offended you. The Icelandic version of the video was posted shortly after the crash, along with several others. My goal with the translation was to be as true to the original Icelandic captions as possible, although it used in several places language that I would not typically use myself.
These online videos and the TV comedy shows at the time on the Icelandic TV (e.g. spaugstofan), provided an important avenue for Icelanders to vent their frustration.
Here is another sample:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMroEjnorek
Considering all the “bad things” that are currently happening to us, I think we the Icelanders should be entitled to have at least some fun at the expense of the Europeans.
We will get serious enough, again very soon…
Hi Terry,
We have had to adjust and adapt our policy on commenting a lot since last autumn when the forum really took off. We are currently working to cement our policy onto paper and hope to post it on the website as well.
In the meantime, I assure you that we will not censor comments in line with our own personal bias. Comments will only be censored to avoid undue repetition, off topic posts and offensive materials.
Our stand on what is to be considered offensive or vulgar has always been very liberal, I hope you agree?
Let me assure you that our moral compass is not weighted in favour of Iceland and Icelanders – a point hopefully borne out by the fact that many of the most offensive comments still visible on the site are directed against Iceland and Icelanders.
I hope this goes some way to reassuring you.
Thanks for reading!
Alex, IceNews editor
>Here is a funny Icelandic version of the same video that was put up on YouTube shortly after the crash:
Bjarni – I am a little disappointed – especially given your earlier comment
>I kind of miss the fierce and challenging fact-based debate on important issues, we had on numerous occations last fall. Some of the discussion now seems to have degenerated a bit into both name calling and accusations, which doesn’t solve anything and is simply not that interesting to me.
https://www.icenews.is/index.php/2009/05/25/icesave-deal-tantalisingly-close-iceland-finance-minister/#comment-78309
Alexander E fulfils the role of labelling IceSavers as stupid and greedy.
>Peter.
How much sympathy would you expect from me for people who gave their money to “internet bank” and now want ME to pay for their stupidity and greed?
https://www.icenews.is/index.php/2009/07/29/more-members-of-parliament-against-the-icesave-deal/#comment-87368
On Jul 21, 2009, Jarrett Iovine said:
Comment from IceNews
I deleted the above comment published by SIR EURO, and IceNews would also like to remind our other uses that racist remarks, swindles, comments, and the like will absolutely not be tolerated here at IceNews, especially when they are against our home country of Iceland. You are more than welcomed to write a comment, whether it be a positive or negative view, without racist marks that can be taken as offensive to natives of the country. This again goes not just for comments against Iceland or Icelanders, but any race or country or religion and so on.
We allow the option for our readers to comment, discuss, and debate articles as IceNews will publish at a neutral standpoint, so we ask our commenters to also be mature about their comments and take into consideration many people from all over the world will be reading them as they are attached to the article.
Thank you and enjoy commenting!
Comment from IceNews
https://www.icenews.is/index.php/2009/07/21/denmark-newspaper-jyllands-posten-published-joke-about-iceland-eu-application/#comment-86260
I expressed concern relating to Jarretts dictatorial decision – and my comment was not published.
However, I am concerned – given Jarretts comment. Is it acceptable to publish two links drawing comparison between Brown and Hitler – yet be sensitive about critical comments relating to Iceland?
It does not offend me to read hostile comment about the UK, or the perceived stupidity of people like me who were IceSavers.
What does worry me is that a formally relaxed forum is now demonstrating a bias -accepting comment from one side – that it rejects from those with opposing views.
To AnneD:
Here is a funny Icelandic version of the same video that was put up on YouTube shortly after the crash:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWPhTYsFTv8
Loose translation of the Icelandic text captions:
My fuhrer, we need to manufacture more airplanes and tanks.
We also need more capital to finish the exciting TV series Derrick
and we need to increase our production of Haribo gummi-bears by 50%.
No problem, just take the money out of our IceSave account.
My fuhrer … IceSave
My fuhrer, the Landsbanki is bankrupt and IceSave also.
(long wait while Hitler tries to control his temper)
Everyone here, except Keitel, Jodl, and Krips, should leave.
This was supposed to be safe!
To hell with it, it was suppsoed to be safe!
I saw Geir H. Haarde on BBC where he said everything was fine
and then it all crashes like house of cards few days later.
Devil, Damn, Hell (common Icelandic swear words, typically combined together)
I cannot believe this stupid bank chairman has stabbed me in the back.
He even told me that the Icelanders named their hot-dogs after our SS.
I will never again go to Baejarins Bestu! (“the” main hot-dog stand in Reykjavik)
My fuhrer. SS actually means Slaturfelag Sudurlands. (The Butcher Company of the South)
Shut your mouth for once.
It was you that told me to deposit the money into this no-good bank.
My fuhrer, you cannot simplify like this, this is now an international financial crisis.
International financial crisis my arian ass.
These bank managers are stupid fools
not to exclude the politicians.
Their central bank chair is a curly-haired, short-story author that has not even dogs-knowledge of economics..
and their finance minister is a vetenerian.
What the hell were you thinking when you deposited this money into this bank.
Then there are just some stupid halfwits that are controlling these banks.
Totally incompitent fools that I would not trust to go to the store for me.
What were you thinking. The krona was in a free-fall and crazy inflation, anyone with a brain, could see this would never last through the year.
Well, this is not totally the end of the world.
We still have the stock in FL Group.
We sell those…
…and then we take over Europe!
This happens at the worst possible time.
The prices for bratwurst and bavarian lethershorts are up to crazy levels…
…and we cannot pay the army at the end of next month.
If we cannot get this money before the end of the year, we are finished…
…and how in the hell are we supposed to finish those Derrick shows!
Everything will be fine, we can just watch the Inspector Rex TV-show instead.
We have to do something about this.
We cannot let them walk all over us.
This can never happen again.
Never again.
Call Haribo and tell them that from here on it is banned to sell Icelanders gummi-bears.
Expel all the Icelandic handball players and stop selling them Osram lightbulbs.
From here on, I will only do business with Faroe Islands
Alistair Darling has lost Gordon Brown’s expenses, must see video of NuLabour’s financial mess
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QmHK6JyS1-E
[…] Original post: Bjorgulfur Gudmundsson, the latest victim of the fallen banks in … […]
Victim?
Are you joking?!
Me too. So, are we Icelandic billionaires?
I’m £500m richer than the richest man in Iceland.