Bank of America

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Banks Have Gotten a Bum Rap: BofA Chief Ken Lewis

The steps already taken are working, so let the market sort it out

(Newser) - Banks have been unfairly tarred by misconceptions about the current financial crisis, Bank of America CEO Kenneth Lewis argues in the Wall Street Journal. It's not true that banks aren't lending, he writes. They are just doing so more responsibly, as they should. And it's not true that bad banks...

Trader's $400M Loss Behind Merrill's London 'Irregularity'

(Newser) - A rogue Merrill Lynch trader appears to have posted some $400 million in undisclosed losses in recent months, the Financial Times reports, covering his tracks with the “irregularity” the firm’s London branch is currently investigating. Alexis Stenfors, now suspended, reported $120 million in gains in 2008’s fourth...

Cuomo Subpoenas Merrill's $10M Execs

Payouts may violate securities law

(Newser) - New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo has subpoenaed top executives of Merrill Lynch who got at least $10 million each last year as the bank floundered, the Wall Street Journal reports. Cuomo is investigating whether the payouts violated securities law and wants to know why executives at Merrill and Bank...

Battered Merrill's Top 10 Pocketed $209M

Compensation for top execs higher than in '07, despite firm's massive losses

(Newser) - Merrill Lynch's top 10 earners raked in more than $200 million last year as their company lost $27.6 billion, a Wall Street Journal investigation finds. Eleven execs were each paid at least $10 million in cash and shares, which have now dived in value. A further 149 execs made...

Stocks Inch Up After Plunge
 Stocks Inch Up After Plunge 
MARKET Open

Stocks Inch Up After Plunge

(Newser) - Stocks limped higher at the open today, after a punishing Monday session that left the Dow below 7,000, its worst levels since April 1997. Today the Dow was up 80 points in early trading, the Wall Street Journal reports, while the S&P and Nasdaq added 1.6% and...

Cuomo Orders BofA to Name Bonus Takers

Subpoena issued after CEO's grilleing by Merrill bonus probe

(Newser) - Bank of America CEO Kenneth Lewis has been ordered to hand over a full list of Merrill Lynch execs who received bonuses just before the bank took over the company, reports Reuters. Lewis was grilled for hours yesterday in the offices of New York AG Andrew Cuomo, who's looking into...

Street Battles Back; Dow Up 236
 Street Battles Back; Dow Up 236 
MARKETS

Street Battles Back; Dow Up 236

Financials lead rally

(Newser) - Stocks rallied today as traders snapped up bargains in the wake of yesterday’s sell-off, the Financial Times reports. Citigroup and Bank of America led the surge after Ben Bernanke said the government would not have to resort to nationalization to save the beleaguered banks. The Dow gained 236.16,...

Dow Off 251; Lowest Close Since '97
 Dow Off 251; 
 Lowest Close Since '97 
MARKETS

Dow Off 251; Lowest Close Since '97

Financials do better on reports of that nationalization will be gentle

(Newser) - Stocks fell today as concerns about waning global demand sank shares of giants like IBM, Hewlett-Packard, General Electric, and Alcoa, the Wall Street Journal reports. Citigroup bucked the trend on reports that a government takeover wouldn’t wipe out shareholders, and rose 11%. The Dow fell 250.89 to 7,...

Stop Stalling and Nationalize Bailout Banks: Krugman

The sooner we take over zombie banks, the better, says Krugman

(Newser) - The case for temporarily nationalizing some of America's biggest banks is so persuasive that even Alan Greenspan, the baron of laissez-faire capitalism, thinks it's a good idea. Yet the Obama administration keeps proposing half-measures and workarounds. New York Times columnist Paul Krugman says the government should get it over with:...

Dow Ends Sorry Week Off 101
 Dow Ends Sorry Week Off 101 
MARKETS

Dow Ends Sorry Week Off 101

Nationalization talk spurs financial sell-off

(Newser) - Stocks lost value again today as talk of nationalizing top US banks spurred investors to sell financials, MarketWatch reports. The Obama administration tried to tamp down the nationalization chatter, but without success. Meanwhile, General Electric and General Motors fell 6% and 16%, respectively. The Dow lost 100.28 to close...

Dodd Backs Nationalizing Banks; White House Doesn't

Banking chair weighs short-term moves

(Newser) - Chris Dodd says the US may have to nationalize the most troubled banks for “a short time” to save the financial system, Bloomberg reports. The chairman of the Senate Banking Committee joined Ben Bernanke and Alan Greenspan in calling for serious consideration of nationalizing flailing institutions such as Bank...

BofA Boss Ordered to Testify in $3.6B Bonus Probe

Massive perks paid out before pricey bailout

(Newser) - Bank of America chairman Kenneth Lewis has been subpoenaed to testify in the investigation into possible deception of investors over the Merrill Lynch takeover, sources tell the Wall Street Journal. New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo is exploring whether the bank broke the law by failing to inform investors of...

Banks Halt Foreclosures Ahead of Obama Plan

Citigroup, Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase suspend proceedings until next month

(Newser) - Major US banks agreed today to halt foreclosure proceedings against homeowners until the White House foreclosure prevention plan is in place, the Washington Post reports. Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, and Bank of America will suspend foreclosures until early March, when the foreclosure plan is expected to be operational. President Obama is...

Indexes Mixed, Dow Drops 10
 Indexes Mixed, Dow Drops 10 
MARKETS

Indexes Mixed, Dow Drops 10

All eyes are on Treasury's bank plan

(Newser) - Markets were mixed today as the delayed White House bank bailout plan left investors with little to go on, MarketWatch reports. Still, some financials soared, with Bank of America up 11.28% and insurers Hartford and Genworth Financial up at least 14%. The Dow fell 9.96 points to close...

Advertising With TARP Funds Is Tricky Business

The public increasingly is taking a hard look at how TARP funds are spent

(Newser) - Companies that received TARP funds are being forced to deal with some unexpected fallout: the ire of taxpayers who see sponsorships and ad campaigns as frivolous wastes of rescue dollars, reports Advertising Age. But execs at those companies say that to pay back those borrowed monies, they must develop new...

BofA Tricks People Into Paying the Dead's Bills

Bank accused of shady practices in collecting cash from bereaved relatives

(Newser) - Bank of America has been misleading customers into believing they have to pay off the credit card bills of dead relatives, TPM reports. One customer was outraged when a bank rep tried to first trick, and then guilt-trip him into paying his dead mother's bills. A former rep for the...

Stimulus Hope Lifts Dow 217
 Stimulus Hope Lifts Dow 217 
MARKETS

Stimulus Hope Lifts Dow 217

Market shrugs off 7.6% unemployment

(Newser) - Stocks rallied today as investors anticipated quick action on a stimulus package, MarketWatch reports. Unemployment for January was 7.6%, but investors are betting the frightening figure will spur Congress to expedite the bill. The Dow rose 217.52  to close at 8,280.59. The Nasdaq gained 45.47...

Bank of America May Pay Yanks $20M for Marketing

(Newser) - No, the Yankees won't be playing at Bank of America Stadium next year. But the bank, which has accepted billions in federal aid, may yet pay the team about $20 million in a marketing deal, the Daily News reports. Talks continue despite the heat that Citibank took for paying the...

Retail Drives Dow Down 122
 Retail Drives Dow Down 122 
MARKETS

Retail Drives Dow Down 122

Bank of America continues fall as government fix remains unclear

(Newser) - The stock market saw losses today as ugly earnings reports and continued uncertainty over the banking sector soured investor confidence, the Wall Street Journal reports. Bank of America, off 10.6%, was that sector’s big casualty; a grim forecast pushed Costco down 6.8%. The Dow fell 121.70...

Bailout Firms Lobbied Big Time for TARP Funds

Spending on charities, sponsored meetings topped $330,000

(Newser) - Several of the firms who would receive taxpayer funds from the TARP bailout spent money on meetings and charitable gifts that benefited lawmakers, the Hill reports. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, for example, donated $330,000 in the last 6 months of 2008 to politically affiliated charities. Bank of America,...

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