Lodas- You are missing my point. Which is, the FDIC can't sell what they don't own. For example, I have purchased several cars and three homes in my lifetime. In each case, I took out a loan to complete the purchase. Also, in each case, the company whio loaned me the money, held the title to the property. In each case, I couldn't sell that property without, first, paying off the loan. The reason being, I couldn't sell what I didn't own. That same principle applies to the sale of WMB. The FDIC must pay off WMB's debt before they can sell WMB to JPMC. The reason being, the debt holders owns the title to WMB. Therefore, the sale can't be consumated. One cannot sell what they don't own. Its the law!