BankThink

Fifth Third Settles with SEC; EU Rate-Rigging Fines Revisited; Pandit the Disruptor

12/05/13

Receiving Wide Coverage ...

On the Regulatory Horizon: An anonymouse tells the Journal that the forthcoming Volcker Rule won't allow banks to use "portfolio hedging," thanks to JPMorgan Chase's whole "London Whale" debacle. "Regulators, in response to [JPM's disclosure its trades were a hedge], pushed to write a rule that would ensure banks couldn't engage in such trades," the paper reports. "The move will come as a blow to banks, which lobbied regulators to keep language...

[more]

Overlooked in Housing Reform Debate: Risk of Lender Concentration

12/04/13

Ignoring the effects of loan seller origination, sourcing, and servicing processes in a post-GSE secondary market could generate losses for taxpayers.

[more]

Blockbuster Video: A Cautionary Tale for Bankers

12/04/13

Following tectonic shifts in the video rental industry, the very Blockbuster stores that were just yesterday a competitive advantage rather quickly became an albatross. That type of chain of events is one that bankers need to be especially on guard for.

[more]

EU Fines Banks for Rate-Rigging; 'Twas the Week Before Volcker Rule Vote

12/04/13

Breaking News This Morning ...

Fined: European Union regulators have fined eight financial institutions, including Deutsche Bank, Société Générale, Royal Bank of Scotland, Citigroup and JPMorgan Chase, for colluding in attempts to manipulate key global benchmark interest rates. Penalties total $2.32 billion. Future penalties are possible. Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, New York Times Receiving Wide Coverage ... ...

[more]

Slate Writer Is Dead Wrong to Root Against Community Banks

12/03/13

There’s a reason most Americans still like their local banks, even if they detest the megabanks after the financial crisis.

[more]

To Succeed in Mobile Banking, Avoid Either/Or Mindset

11/27/13

Banks shouldn’t feel forced to place all their bets on one platform or another. In the shorter term, successful future models of banking will be hybrids.

[more]

Avoiding a Litigation Nightmare in a Commercial Mortgage Foreclosure

11/27/13

Commercial loan officers must use judgment in discussions and email exchanges with property moguls, whose lawyers will construe statements and written correspondence in a way most favorable to the borrower.

[more]

SEC Questions Citi, Morgan Stanley on Foreign Hiring Practices; New Subprime Boom?

11/27/13

Receiving Wide Coverage ...

Questioned: The Securities and Exchange Commission has stepped up its probe into Wall Street's foreign hiring practices. Anonymice are telling their favorite news outlets that Citigroup and Morgan Stanley have both received letters requesting information to determine whether the banks violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Scan readers will recall that, back in August, JPMorgan Chase revealed the regulator was investigating whether the bank habitually hired the children of prominent Chinese officials...

[more]

Captains of Finance Need Self-Imposed Restraint

11/26/13

Big-bank executives should finalize living wills, hold each other publicly accountable and re-teach ethics training within their rank-and-file if they hope to escape an escalated regulatory crackdown.

[more]

Why Big Is Bad in Government, Business, Banks

11/26/13

Modern giants are likely to behave at least as badly as their World War II counterparts.

[more]