BankThink

HSBC Aspires Globally, Fails Locally

06/16/11

Strategies such as "One HSBC" - which sound good in an analytical report, consulting presentation or boardroom - don't work equally well in 88+ countries.

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Revamp Commercial Accounts for Reg Q Repeal

06/15/11

Business checking accounts are in for a change now that interest will be permitted. Mid-size banks have the biggest opportunity to win over new clients.

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For Core System Upgrades, Strategy Matters as Much as Software

06/15/11

Modernizing a bank's core requires more than bids from vendors. Project leaders need a clear roadmap and executive buy-in.

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Fed Backing Giving 'Too Big' Banks Too Big a Funding Edge

06/15/11

As long as the markets perceive the continuation of TBTF they are giving a funding advantage to those firms, with all of the distortion of risk pricing that comes with that.

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Relationships Are Hard, Especially with Regulators

06/14/11

The supervisory relationship is, in its way, stronger even than the bonds of matrimony. There are no divorces in banking. Despite the many temptations, and even the occasional justifications, bankers cannot indulge their passions and treat examiners harshly.

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Approving Loans Is a Risky Role for Bank Directors

06/14/11

The dilemma for community bank directors is to choose between minimizing their personal liability and the useful function that board reviews of individual loans can serve.

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Citi Fooled by Old Tricks in Hack Attack

06/14/11

Citigroup has so far come off looking good in how it has fought off its website breach - 99% of its cardholders were unaffected, and a recent New York Times story portrayed Citi as the victim of "a team of sophisticated thieves" - but the approach of Citi's foes wasn't all that sophisticated.

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Stress Tests for Community Banks Would Be Mission Creep

06/14/11

Internal stress-testing is a good practice, but regulatory use of hypothetical results to determine supervisory ratings or required capital levels would be destructive.

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CFPB Rumors Just Making Situation Worse

06/10/11

I just don't get it. Why is the White House floating Raj Date, one of Elizabeth Warren's top lieutenants at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, as the agency's potential director? Don't get me wrong, Date is eminently qualified for the job. A former banker and financial analyst, Date no doubt has the chops for the post. What I don't understand is the political motivations behind floating his name at all.

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Chief Factor in Small-Bank Survival? It's the Chief

06/08/11

Painful consolidation is coming to community banks, and the biggest determinant of which companies will survive is the quality of senior management, particularly the chief executive.

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