BankThink

FERC Enforcement Actions Will Push Compliance Units into Overdrive

11/13/12

Internal governance policies should define for shareholders, employees and the public how the bank plans to effectively manage the stated risk appetite.

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The Plot Thickens in the Bizarre Bitcoin Blackmail Caper

11/12/12

There have been some new twists in the strange case of an alleged attempt to blackmail Mitt Romney for $1 million in bitcoins, raising additional legal questions about the digital currency.

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History's Lesson for Managing a Bank in a Zero Interest Rate Environment

11/12/12

The old concept of real interest rate return is virtually nonexistent. Banks face temptation to reach for extra yield by taking more risk.

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Buzzwords Do Not Benefit the Unbanked

11/12/12

The terms 'unbanked' and 'underbanked' perpetuate the erroneous notion that everyone needs a bank account and inhibit discussion of better ways to serve the financial needs of non-traditional consumers.

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Pandit's Payoff, Dreaming of Wealth, Blankfein's Helping Hand

11/12/12

Receiving Wide Coverage ...

Burying the News 101: It's a PR trick as old as Wall Street. If you're going to release ugly news, do it when nobody's watching. That appears to be the play Citigroup (NYSE:C) called late Friday when just before Veteran's Day weekend it disclosed that its recently ousted chief executive, Vikram Pandit, will receive $6.7 million in pay for 2012. That's on top of $8.8 million for 2011, bringing Pandit's two-year total...

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Run Your Bank Like a Store: Fans, Not Customers, Part II

11/12/12

Comparable store growth is the core of any great retailer. If you cannot grow your existing stores, you do not deserve to expand.

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Discussion: Who Should Be the Next Treasury Secretary?

11/09/12

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has made it clear he plans to leave office, but who from a long list of likely (and far-reaching) candidates should be chosen as his replacement?

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Thanks to Dodd-Frank, Community Banks Are Too Small to Survive

11/09/12

Politicians may wax lyrical on the importance of community banks to local economies and regulators may claim the focus of their efforts is on institutions that are "too big to fail," but the facts tell a different story.

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Unforgettable Bankers

11/09/12

It was a privilege and a learning experience to meet some old-school bankers during my travels as an examiner some 50 years ago. Here are some who left lasting impressions.

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With Fed Approval, JPMorgan Moves Beyond the Whale, HSBC Faces New Inquiry

11/09/12

Breaking News This Morning

HSBC Faces New Inquiry: British tax authorities say they are looking into a list of HSBC clients with bank accounts in Jersey, the largest island in the English Channel, after receiving a tip from a whistle-blower. The data allegedly shows that "drug dealers, gun runners and bankers facing major fraud investigations had accounts with the bank in Jersey," the FT reports. HSBC told the Times it was aware (and subsequently looking into)...

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