Here we go again.

The medallions are required to operate a taxi in NYC. Originally, the fee for the medallion was quite modest. However an industry grew up around it similar to ticket scalpers; a consortium would buy up the permits and sell to the highest bidder. NYC realized how much money was being left on the table, so to speak, so they set up their own lottery system and the sky was the limit! Now, the banks that were funding this fiasco are watching the real value of their collateral holdings vanish, so they now find themselves in the hands of the receivers. I wonder if the taxpayers are going to end up holding the bag on this one?

Government meddling once again creating a problem where no problem existed before.