Bankruptcy Blogs

What the ...?

12/10/14

Just received this month's ABI Journal. I surely can't be the only one who finds the ad for the BMC Group – inside the front cover – obnoxious, even offensive (I'm not going to dignify it by reproducing it). I get that sex sells ... but in a bankruptcy journal, advertising a claims agent?

[more]

The Daily Docket: Lehman Trader Seeks $84 Million Bonus…Again

12/10/14

Lehman Brothers says a former trader received his entire $84 million bonus in 2008. Now the failed bank claims he is asking for it again. The Wall Street Journal has the Daily Bankruptcy Review article here.

[more]

Colorado Is No Model for a National Payday Rule

12/10/14

Colorado's interest rate cap on payday lending has successfully brought down costs for borrowers, but the state continues to experience unacceptably high default rates.

[more]

Morning Scan: Banks' Stake in Budget Bill; Capital Surcharges' Ripple Effect

12/10/14

Receiving Wide Coverage ...

Break Up or Buckle Up: JPMorgan Chase will be the bank hardest hit by the Federal Reserve's proposed capital surcharges on the country's biggest banks. Fed vice chairman Stanley Fischer let slip that JPMorgan faces a $22 billion shortfall to meet the forthcoming capital rule during a question and answer session, as American Banker reported last night. Other banks are apparently at or near the minimum levels, and JPMorgan has until 2019...

[more]

Why the World Hates Lawyers

12/09/14

Why does the world hate lawyers?  Because of stuff like this.  You can't make this up:  the on-line menu prices for a Chinese restaurant weren't up-to-date, and a customer was overcharged $4. I get being pissed about that.  But what would most people do?  Just lump it, stop patronizing the restaurant, ask the restaurant for a refund, or complain to the credit card issuer.

[more]

Failed-Bank Settlements May Bring Unwelcome Surprise

12/09/14

Bank directors and officers who agree to settle claims brought by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. in its capacity as receiver may find themselves next confronting a lifetime ban from the industry.

[more]

The Daily Docket: Former Madoff Operations Director Sentenced

12/09/14

The leader of Bernard Madoff’s broker-dealer business was sentenced to 10 years in prison on Monday for aiding one of the largest financial frauds in U.S. history with “his meticulous bookkeeping and averted eye,” reports WSJ.

[more]

Financial Industry Should Be Its Own Knight in Shining Armor

12/09/14

For too long, both companies and regulators have bought into a narrative that makes the financial industry dependent on the government for rescues and direction. ItÂ's time to pen a new plot.

[more]

Morning Scan: Deutsche Bank Sued for Tax Fraud; 3% Downpayments Make Comeback

12/09/14

Receiving Wide Coverage ...

Shell Shock: Deutsche Bank is accused of owing the U.S. government more than $190 million in taxes, penalties and interest in a lawsuit filed Monday by federal prosecutors in Manhattan. The allegations against the German lender are pretty complicated, as the New York Times warns its readers. The basic charge is that back in 2000, Deutsche wanted to avoid paying capital gains taxes on the appreciated value of Bristol-Myers Squibb stock it...

[more]

Brazil Is the Country to Watch for Mobile Payments

12/08/14

Many people in Brazil don't have bank accounts-but they do have smartphones. These qualities, in combination with favorable regulations, make the country likely to adopt mobile payments in a big way.

[more]