BankThink

Morning Scan: B of A Unit Probed for Tax Trades; Morgan Stanley Succession Plan

01/07/16

Wall Street Journal

Is it a case of He Who Must Not Be Named? No, it's not Voldemort from the Harry Potter series. It's the Structured Equity Finance and Trading group at Bank of America, also known as SEFT. Why has the division been sent to the penalty box? Because regulators have stepped up the pace of investigations into the type of dividend-tax trades made by SEFT. Unnamed sources say regulators are looking into whether the...

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Banks Are Finally Turning the Corner on Improving Culture

01/06/16

After enduring a slew of post-crisis scandals, bankers are beginning to see the light on becoming stewards of their organizations.

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What's Really Causing Turnover of New Branch Hires

01/06/16

Subpar mentoring programs for recruits new to the banking industry could be the reason institutions are finding it hard to keep new talent.

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Morning Scan: Clinton Responds to Sanders; 'Good Riddance' to Accounting Rule

01/06/16

Wall Street Journal

Considering JPMorgan Chase's experience with failing to tell its wealthy clients where it was investing their money, perhaps this item is not a surprise. Mutual fund giant Vanguard Group set a record in 2015, reeling in $236 billion from investors. It's the largest annual flow of money to a mutual fund company in history, according to Morningstar. ...

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New Finance in 2016: Banks and Disruptors Are Better Together

01/05/16

At the start of 2015, there was a sense that Silicon Valley would soon rule the world of finance and that banks risked irrelevance. A year later, a more balanced picture has emerged.

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A World Without Overdraft Protection (It Ain't Pretty)

01/05/16

If impending rules on overdraft protection go too far, banks could intentionally pull back on providing the service to illustrate just how useful it is.

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Morning Scan: Lenders' Private Equity Counsel Conflict; Sanders' TBTF Plan

01/05/16

Wall Street Journal

Bank stocks, measured by the KBW Nasdaq Bank Index, rose 35% in 2013, boosted by hope that then-Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke would raise interest rates, David Reilly writes in a short "Overheard" column. Then 2014 arrived and the waiting game began. The KBW index rose only 7% for the year, trailing the overall market's performance. Things got worse last year, as bank stocks lost 1.6% for the year. ...

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If Banks Fear Screen Scraping, Why Are They Fighting the Alternative?

01/04/16

Banks claim bandwidth and security concerns led to interruptions for personal finance apps, but institutions still resist a more secure and efficient portal.

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Recent M&A Deals Suffer from Overly Rosy Projections

01/04/16

Unlike the bargain-heavy aftermath of the crisis, acquisitions during the recovery have been hampered by high premiums and unsatisfactory returns.

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Morning Scan: No Flowers from Trump; Masters' Fundraising Woes

01/04/16

Wall Street Journal

Presidential contender Donald Trump doesn't have a public record to analyze, but he does have a business record. The Journal, in its analysis of that record, shows Trump at his weakest, and his most heartless, in his dealings with Citigroup. In 1990, Trump's Atlantic City-fueled debt load was about to get the best of him, according to Citi banker Robert McSween. Trump arrived at Citi's office one night, upon being summoned to work...

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