What the UBS's $37 billion loss could have bought...

The $37 billion written off by UBS is not only more than the GDP of most African countries, it would buy over 4000 tonnes of the world's finest caviar and pay for two Olympic games.

The staggering writedowns make UBS the hardest-hit bank by the recent credit crisis and governments, aid agencies and Hollywood glitterati must all be wincing at the thought of what the money could have been spent on.

The $37 billion figure is more than the entire GDP of 85 percent of African countries and roughly equals those of Slovenia and Sudan according to World Bank figures. More...