national-global

Morning Scan Déjà Vu: Fed Rejects Citi's Capital Plan; B of A Settles Over Bad Mortgages

03/27/14

Receiving Wide Coverage ...

Stress Tests, Part II: Citigroup bore the brunt of bad press associated with the Federal Reserve's second round of stress test results, given that the bank had its capital plan rejected by the central bank for the second time in three years. The Journal calls the Fed's decision Â-- which appears to be based on "qualitative" measures Â-- "a surprising blow to Chief Executive Michael Corbat's effort to bolster the bank's reputation...

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Morning Scan: Who's Left to Succeed Jamie Dimon Now?

03/26/14

Receiving Wide Coverage ...

Another One Bites the Dust: Since JPMorgan Chase let $6 billion get swallowed by its London Whale, the bank has lost or replaced most of the senior executives below CEO Jamie Dimon, including its chief financial officer, co-chief operating officer, chief risk officer, chief compliance officer, co-head of litigation, chief investment officer, chief information officer and head of consumer banking. Now you can add to that list Mike Cavanagh, co-head of JPMorgan...

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Morning Scan: M&A Double Dipping; Foreign Banks Flock to Fed

03/10/14

Receiving Wide Coverage ...

Both Sides Now: If the folks in mergers and acquisitions look discouraged today, it's probably more than a bad case of the Mondays. A Delaware judge hearing a case about the conflicts of interest that possibly arise when bankers advise both the buyer and seller in the same deal has found that RBC acted improperly when its bankers tried getting in on both sides of a 2011 merger in the health care...

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Morning Scan: Media Loses Mind After Newsweek Maybe Unmasks Creator of Bitcoin

03/07/14

Receiving Wide Coverage ...

The Father of Bitcoin? Newsweek kicked a media-filled hornet's nest yesterday when reporter Leah McGrath Goodman purported to have found the creator of Bitcoin. The person in question? A 64-year-old Japanese engineer living in California named Dorian Satoshi Nakamoto, or, legally, Satoshi Nakamoto, the name that first appeared on a white paper introducing the cryptocurrency in 2008. Goodman's article, containing numerous details on Nakamoto's life and several interviews with family and friends,...

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Morning Scan: The 'Emerging Prime' Market; Barclays' Bonus Explanation Falls Flat

03/06/14

Receiving Wide Coverage ...

The Mercurial Subprime Market: New lenders, including Lending Club and Freedom Plus, are servicing the subprime sector, reports the Journal. These entrants are hoping to fill the void left by banks, reluctant to lend to the demographic following the financial crisis (and all the resulting regs.) The Journal notes these firms are lending at interest rates "approaching 10% and sometimes much more Â... a premium above prime loans Â... but less than...

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Mornng Scan: Japan Mulls Bitcoin Regulation; Beware Emerging Markets

03/05/14

Receiving Wide Coverage ... Closer to Bitcoin Regulation: Japan is close to regulating cryptocurrency Bitcoin, following the collapse of Tokyo-based exchange Mt. Gox. Draft regulation, which includes a tax on Bitcoin transactions and prohibits banks and securities firms from handling the cryptocurrency, appears to treat Bitcoin more like a commodity than an actual currency, but a lawmaker, who opposes the plan, has asked for clarification. One look at this Journal quote from an anonymouse and youÂ...

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Morning Scan: Banks Hit by Turmoil in Ukraine; More Bad News for Citi

03/04/14

Receiving Wide Coverage ...

Exposed: Turmoil in the Ukraine roiled global markets on Monday, with European and Russian bank stocks taking a hit. The Times reports global markets had calmed on Tuesday (no specifics on bank stocks mentioned), after Russian President Vladimir Putin said via news conference that he saw no need to use military force at the moment. However, investors tell the paper "confidence remains fragile Â... and the calm could quickly dissipate." The FT...

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Morning Scan: PNC Subpoenaed; Citi Reports Fraud; The Future of Bitcoin

03/03/14

Breaking News This Morning ...

Subpoenaed: PNC Financial disclosed in a regulatory filing that it has received subpoenas from prosecutors over certain mortgage-lending practices. The bank has also received subpoenas from the Justice Department and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau about the return rate for its payment-processor clients. Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg Receiving Wide Coverage ... ...

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Morning Scan: Yellen Talks Weather; Mt. Gox Files for Bankruptcy

02/28/14

Receiving Wide Coverage ...

Yellen on the Hill, Again: Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen appeared before the Senate Banking Committee Thursday. Here's what we learned from her second trip to the Hill as the central bank's leader: She watches the weather Â-- "I think it's clear the unseasonably cold weather has played some role in that," she told lawmakers when asked about a recent run of bad economic data Â-- and she's waiting to see what...

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Morning Scan: What Mt. Gox Means for Bitcoin; JPM's Cautious Outlook

02/26/14

Receiving Wide Coverage ...

On Mt. Gox: The apparent collapse of big Bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox has reignited concerns about the digital currency. Japan's government, for instance, is now looking into regulating Bitcoin, though officials are not offering any specifics as to how. Some pundits are arguing, amid crashing Bitcoin prices, that Gox has sounded the cryptocurrency's death knell given that the reported theft of 744,000 bitcoins is likely to preclude prospective and even current users...

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