Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has been the subject of much fawning attention since the release of its iPad in 2010. News reported today completely vindicates every nice thing everybody has said about the device. Back in February the world was on the brink of collapse. Here’s the story of how the iPad, or rather 100 of them, saved the world.
The founder of Bondholder Communications Group, Bob Apfel, was working on the restructuring deal that saved Greece from default last Spring. It involved shaving a percentage of Greek’s debt off of the face value of the country’s bonds. In order to make the deal happen a huge number of bondholders needed to sign off on it before it could be completed. It was an incredible problem of organisation and a logistical nightmare.
Apfel, appropriately named, had a solution to the problem. He got 100 iPads directly from Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and had them delivered across Europe to all of the big decision makers involved in the deal. The tablets came preloaded with a special app that handled debt restructuring. That allowed instant decision making by a large amount of agents and provided a platform that allowed the deal to be made efficiently and effectively.
With no iPad there would have been no way to make this happen as quickly and easily as it did. If Greece did not get the restructuring deal it needed the country would have had to declare bankruptcy. That would have had a knock off effect across Europe and the rest of the world that can not be overestimated. Needless to say the future of the euro would have been in serious doubt.
A European collapse might have instigated a second recession across the world. It could have resulted in a decade or more of complete depression and a huge reduction in living circumstance everywhere in the world. Needless to say it wouldn’t have been a good time for anyone.
The presence of 100 iPads in the right places at the right times can change the world and it can save the world from complete and entire collapse. According to Apfel Greece’s restructuring was the biggest financial transaction of all time.
The iPad is an incredible device. It can do just about everything. But today’s news really adds to the devices reputation. The next time somebody points to a European, or extra-European debt crisis (It could happen), calmly tell them that there is an app for that.
