American Banker back issues from September 1995:
Community banks win a round in California branching debate.
Sep 01, 1995; ... Community banks have been dealt another defeat in their battle to limit the impact of the interstate branching law that takes effect nationwide in 1997.On Tuesday, a California Senate committee rejected a plan that would have required out-of-state banks to buy a whole bank to gain ...
Bank mutual fund customers sample riskier end of investment spectrum.
Sep 01, 1995; ... Having developed a taste for stock mutual funds, some bank brokerage customers are sampling more exotic cuisines.Sales of aggressive growth and international funds, once considered too spicy for investors at banks, are starting to take off, according to sales executives at banks ...
U.S. Bancorp switches its adviser in mid-merger. (merger with West One Bancorp)
Sep 01, 1995; ... U.S. Bancorp has switched investment bankers in the midst of its acquisition of West One Bancorp.UBS Securities replaced CS First Boston Corp., which had advised the Portland, Ore., bank on its May agreement to buy West One for $1.6 billion.In what observers call a ...
NCUA giving up fight for expansion of Houston group. (National Credit Union Administration)
Sep 01, 1995; ... Bankers fighting credit union expansion are on the verge of winning one court battle, but are losing another.The National Credit Union Administration recently asked the Justice Department to give up its defense of a Houston credit union's attempt to extend membership to 500,000 ...
Helfer seeks power to give rebates on deposit insurance premiums. (Federal Deposit Insurance Corp chairman Ricki Helfer)(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995; ... In a recent letter to Congress, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Ricki Helfer asked for the power to return extra premium income to banks."The FDIC seeks the discretionary authority to rebate deposit insurance premiums to avoid excessive buildup in an insurance fund," Ms ....
SBA finds strong profits for community banks in small-business lending. (Small Business Administration)
Sep 01, 1995; ... Small-business lending is one of the more profitable services community banks can offer, according to a study released recently by the Small Business Administration.The SBA's Office of Advocacy analyzed June 1994 call report data and found that for banks with less than $300 million ...
Lobbyist says banks must bear more risk to keep student loans. (John E. Dean)
Sep 01, 1995; ... When the legislative fight over student loans heats up this fall, veteran lobbyist John E. Dean will be leading banks into battle.As special counsel for the Consumer Bankers Association, Mr. Dean's primary job this year is to save the industry from being knocked out of the $20 ...
A warning flag on charging minorities more. (study on automobile sales practices points risks of Equal Credit Opportunity Act to banks)(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995; ... A new study on car purchases has found that sales people try to charge members of minority groups higher prices than whites, a finding relevant to bankers.The researchers, writing in the current issue of American Economic Review, concluded that the sales people are not motivated by ...
Bank South faces the earnings challenge. (interview with Bank South Corp. chairman Patrick L. Flinn)(Interview)
Sep 01, 1995; ... Patrick L. Flinn has had a lot of fun over the past few years taking pokes at his big-bank rivals.The chairman and CEO of Bank South Corp. instigated playful advertising that mocked competitors like North Carolina-based First Union Corp. and NationsBank Corp. This aggressive ...
Bank South will charge $1 each for unencoded handwritten items.
Sep 01, 1995; ... Bank South Corp. has gone out on a new pricing limb, announcing plans to charge customers who submit handwritten deposit slips and counter checks.The Atlanta-based company says it is not out to make money from the fee of $1 on each of those transactions. Rather, the bank wants to ...
More insider trading charges at Rochester. (Rochester Community Savings Bank)(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995; ... The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged another director of Rochester Community Savings Bank and his son with insider trading in the second phase of a growing investigation that has already netted one director and five associates.The commission accused former Rochester ...
Small loans a big niche for some Texas banks.(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995; ... Douglas Bready, executive vice president and loan officer of Texas State Bank, is business-borrower happy. He'd "do just about anything to say 'Yes'" to them.Judging by the numbers, his customers are pretty happy about him too.The $643 million-asset bank in McAllen, near ...
Carver to try again with shareholder vote. (Carver Federal Savings Bank)(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995 ... Carver Federal Savings Bank has postponed shareholder votes on three compensation plans for a second time after again failing to get enough shareholders to vote because of the vacation season.About 70% of the votes at the Aug. 24 meeting were in favor of the three plans, but only ...
Associated Banc-Corp. branching out in Wis.(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995 ... Associated Banc-Corp. recently agreed to acquire two Wisconsin institutions.The $3.4 billion-asset company said it will acquire $211 million-asset Greater Columbia Bancshares and its subsidiary, ...
MidConn expecting loss for its 4th quarter.(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995 ... MidConn Bank officials are expecting to report a loss for the fourth quarter ending Sept. 30, after taking "significant charges" for foreclosed real estate and other nonperforming assets.The state-chartered savings bank still expects to report a profit for the year, however. ...
Citfed, PSB Holdings closer to a merger.(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995 ... Stockholders of Citfed Bancorp and PSB Holdings Corp. recently approved the proposed merger of the two organizations. The merger was expected to be completed ...
First Midwest to buy Iowa Bancorp for $8M.(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995 ... First Midwest Financial Inc. has announced a definitive agreement to acquire Iowa Bancorp, a $25 million-asset company that owns Iowa Savings Bank in Des Moines.First Midwest, which owns First Federal Savings Bank of the ...
Family Bancorp applies for federal charter.(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995 ... Family Bancorp has applied to the Office of Thrift Supervision to convert to a federally chartered thrift in order to merge its Massachusetts and New Hampshire subsidiaries under OTS rules that already allow interstate branching for thrifts.Under the application, Family Mutual ...
Piecemeal sale seen likely for Prudential unit. (Residential Services Corporation of America)
Sep 01, 1995; ... With final bids for Prudential Insurance Company of America's home mortgage unit due today, the market is rife with speculation about who will buy what part of the largest home mortgage company ever put on the auction block.According to sources close to the deal, the unit is likely ...
As margins shrink, lenders go looking for ways to diversify.
Sep 01, 1995; ... Mortgage bankers are eyeing new products and services - from credit cards to financial planning - to supplement bread-and-butter lending.At Source One Mortgage Services Corp., executives are close to closing a marketing deal with a major credit card company. It is envisioned that ...
1st Nationwide unit's chief quits; plans to buy Texas lender. (Richard E. Wilkes)(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995; ... The head of First Nationwide Mortgage Corp. is leaving his post to start a mortgage company south of the border.Richard E. Wilkes, president and chief executive at First Nationwide Corp.'s mortgage subsidiary in San Francisco, has announced his resignation, and is going home next ...
1st Empire State unit in N.Y. acquisition. (Exchange Mortgage Corp., M and T Mortgage Corp.)(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995 ... First Empire State Corp. says its M&T Mortgage Corp. unit has agreed to acquire the mortgage servicing rights and origination franchise of Exchange Mortgage Corp., a full-service mortgage banking company based in Huntington Station, N.Y.Formed in 1960, Exchange had total mortgage ...
Cash Station to slash transaction fees for its on-line point of sale services.(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995; ... Cash Station Inc. announced it will reduce the transaction fees it charges for on-line point of sale services by one-third.The move brings the Chicago-based network's debit service fees more in line with other regional electronic funds transfer services."We know what the ...
CUC hires chief for its shopping program. (CUC International, Christopher K. McLeod)(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995 ... CUC International Inc. has appointed Christopher K. McLeod, 40, executive vice president in the office of the president. He will oversee Comp-U-Card, the company's shopping program, and direct the formation of CUC's target marketing, composed of Welcome Wagon and Getko, and CUC's ...
Household unit cobranding with Brit daily. (HFC Bank, The Sun)(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995 ... Britain's largest daily newspaper has teamed up with a banking subsidiary of Household International to offer a cobranded Eurocard- MasterCard.The Sun, which has a circulation of four million, has been publicizing the card in newspaper inserts and offering an introductory bonus of ...
5th Third processor in deal with Office Depot. (Midwest Payment Systems)(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995 ... Midwest Payment Systems Inc., the transaction processing subsidiary of Fifth Third Bancorp, signed a contract with Office Depot Inc. to process Visa, MasterCard, and Discover credit cards.Office Depot, with sales last year of $4.26 billion, operates 450 ...
Amex Platinum to be gift givers' cue card. (American Express)(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995 ... American Express Co.'s most exclusive product, the Platinum Card, is adding a service to help cardholders remember important dates like birthdays and special events.The program called, Fine Gifts, sends cardholders monthly reminders of these occasions. The idea is ...
Applied Communications to aid Visa launch. (smart cards)(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995 ... Applied Communications Inc. said it will be providing electronic funds transfer authorization software for Visa's launch of stored-value smart cards next summer in Atlanta.About 5,000 merchant locations are expected to accept the cards in the pilot, which will be tied in with the ...
Tyme will tell of shorter ATM-slip numbers. (Tyme Corp.)(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995 ... Tyme Corp., the nation's 21st largest regional electronic banking network, has instituted a policy in which the words "For your protection full card number not printed," will appear on all receipts issued at its automated teller machines.The move comes after a Federal Reserve Board ...
Blockbuster running test of a stored value card.
Sep 01, 1995; ... Blockbuster Entertainment Group, the video rental giant that began offering a cobranded credit card last March, is testing a stored value card in Salt Lake City - without a bank.The Value Card, which uses magnetic stripe technology and is disposable after use, sells for $15 but ...
First Union, MCI in effort to create an on-line service.(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995; ... First Union Corp. is working with MCI Communications Corp. to develop a private and secure on-line service for the bank's customers.Expanding on the ambitious "Cyberbanking" initiative the Charlotte, N.C.-based bank announced earlier this year, First Union and MCI have been ...
Keycorp using client server system to automate ATM balancing act. (Key Services Corp.)(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995; ... Key Services Corp., a unit of Keycorp, has developed a client/server application that automates its ATM deposit and withdrawal balancing.The system, which officials call ATM Operations Workbench, automates a small but labor-intensive segment of bank operations.Officials ...
Mass. company's disaster-recovery system installed at Luxembourg's WestLB International. (EMC Corp.)(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995; ... The Luxembourg-based bank WestLB International has installed an information storage designed to keep its business running efficiently in the event of a computer operations failure.The system, called Symmetrix, is the flagship product of EMC Corp., a Hopkinton, Mass.-based provider ...
Loan terminal provider Affinity alters its name. (Affinity Financial Group becomes Affinity Technology Group)(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995 ... The provider of automated loan terminals formerly known as Affinity Financial Group Inc. has altered its name and attracted a community bank investor.The company, which will operate under the name Affinity Technology Group Inc., has been marketing its terminals for several months ...
Ex-VP at Fiserv to head Formation Technologies. (Robin H. Smith)(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995; ... Robin H. Smith, former senior vice president at Fiserv Inc., has been named president and chief executive of Formation Technologies Inc., a leading provider of compliance, loan origination, and platform automation systems.Mr. Smith, who helped introduce a Windows-based cash ...
2d-half slide for bank stocks unlikely to match last year's.
Sep 01, 1995; ... Bank stocks have a long history of fading in the second half, and last year was no exception. Will 1995 be different?Yes and no. Analysts see no particular reason why banks should head south, as they did last September amid rising interest rates. But few think bank stocks can come ...
Moody's confirms ratings for ING unit. (Moody's Investors Service confirms long-term ratings of Internationale Nederlanden Bank)(Brief Article)
Sep 01, 1995 ... Concluding a review initiated when ING Group agreed to buy the assets of the failed Barings PLC investment house, Moody's Investors Service Inc. confirmed the long-term ratings of ING's Internationale Nederlanden Bank.Barings, the failed London-based merchant bank, had suffered ...
Mixed signals hint economy could be on shaky ground.
Sep 05, 1995; ... After an apparent soft landing this summer, the U.S. economy now appears balanced precariously between fresh growth and the prospect of stagnation or even recession.Market interest rates rose Friday morning on release of an unexpectedly strong employment report. Then they plummeted ...
First Interstate hooks up with telemarketer to cross-sell mortgages; 450 jobs affected. (First Interstate Bancorp. forms joint-venture with PHH Corp.)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 1995; ... First Interstate Bancorp, in a bid to squeeze more business out of its customer base, is forming a joint venture with PHH Corp. to market home loans by telephone.The marketing will begin in the fourth quarter and will cover the bank's 13-state territory.About 450 ...
NationsBank wins major deal to place ATMs in Tex. (automated teller machine contract for Stop-N-Go convenience stores)
Sep 05, 1995; ... NationsBank Corp. said it has won one of the largest installation contracts ever for automated teller machines - a 661-machine network for Stop-N-Go convenience stores in Texas.The deal will make Stop-N-Go, a unit of National Convenience Stores, the latest of several leaders in ...
SEC to take over providing access to documents on-line. (Securities and Exchange Commission)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 1995; ... Want to call up the quarterly report of the bank across the street on your computer? Want to research an acquisition target?The Securities and Exchange Commission plans to provide free access through the Internet to the approximately 12 million documents filed with the agency each ...
Arkansas bank that crossed into Texas given time to respond to state regulator. (Commercial National Bank of Texarkana)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 1995; ... The Arkansas bank that moved into Texas last month has been given until Sept. 12 to respond to the Texas Department of Banking's attempts to force it back across the state line.A state district judge in Texarkana, Tex., granted Commercial National Bank of Texarkana a continuance ...
Thrift fund, reg relief and Glass-Steagall top jam-packed agendas. (Congressional banking committees face busy agendas for Fall, 1995)
Sep 05, 1995; ... After a month off, lawmakers return to work this week and are likely to face a pace as hectic as the session's first 100 days.For the House and Senate Banking committees, the big issues will be bailing out the undercapitalized thrift fund, repealing the Glass-Steagall Act, and ...
Big mergers can be costly for bank trade associations.
Sep 05, 1995; ... At the American Bankers Association, the blockbuster Chase Manhattan-Chemical merger is more than just cause for oohs, aahs, and discussions about the future of the banking industry.It's also a $128,750 hit to the trade group's bottom line.The merger will also be costly ...
Glenfed tackles giants in advertising campaign. (Glenfed Federal Bank)
Sep 05, 1995; ... Glendale Federal Bank, the California thrift that has made a name for itself by going after the state's biggest banks in its advertising, now has trained its sights on the small-business market.The $16 billion-asset company is expanding its services and marketing them with ...
Study of sector planned for next winter. (Benchmark 2000 plans study of small-business lending)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 1995 ... The consulting firm Benchmark 2000 said it has begun organizing a study of small-business lending to be conducted next winter.It said the project, called the Small-Business Lending Benchmark Program, will have a structure similar to that of a recent consumer lending study in which ...
Small business big in Fleet's Incity program. (Fleet Financial Group's Incity community development program)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 1995 ... Fleet Financial Group said small-business lending is the fastest-growing part of its Incity community development program.Launched 18 months ago, Incity represents an $8 billion commitment to improve businesses' and consumers' access to credit in low- income and moderate-income ...
Washington Mutual deal for Enterprise gains. (Enterprise Bank shareholders approve merger with Washington Mutual Bank of Seattle)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 1995 ... Shareholders of Enterprise Bank, Bellevue, Wash., voted last week to approve its merger into Washington Mutual Bank of Seattle, which is owned by the $20 billion-asset Washington Mutual Inc.The approval paved the way for completion of the transaction, which was agreed to in early ...
B of A makes deals to sell 20 branches in Texas. (BankAmerica Corp.)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 1995; ... BankAmerica Corp. said it has reached definitive agreements to sell 20 branches in rural Texas to nine community banks in the state.The agreements bring the San Francisco-based company's Bank of America Texas unit close to completing its previously announced goal of selling 27 ...
Boatmen's buying small Texas bank as a 'fill-in' move. (Boatmen's Bancshares to acquire Tom Green National Bank of San Angelo, Texas)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 1995; ... Boatmen's Bancshares of St. Louis said it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Tom Green National Bank in San Angelo, Tex.Boatmen's did not disclose the terms of the purchase, which will add $73 million of assets and three offices to its existing presence in the area ...
Space Coast takes off in brave new world.(Space Coast Credit Union uses high technology)
Sep 05, 1995; ... Gregory A. Thomas is the credit union industry's Alvin Toffler.Mr. Thomas, the Space Coast Credit Union chief executive, smiles and his eyes gleam in describing the high-tech wonderland of financial services. It's a sleek futureworld where people bank on their televisions, their ...
Notorious scam artist surrenders, ending an 18-month manhunt.(former credit union founder Richard Mangone)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 1995; ... Federal agents arrested the credit union industry's most infamous fugitive on Aug. 29 at a church in Bowling Green, Ky.Richard Mangone became the object of an 18-month federal manhunt and was placed on the U.S. Marshals' Most Wanted list after he vanished five days before his ...
Federal groups seen at risk if budget problems lead to government shutdown.(Federal budget failure would hurt credit unions)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 1995; ... The National Association of Federal Credit Unions said a government shutdown would disrupt the credit union industry and harm its members.If Congress doesn't raise the federal debt ceiling, either independently or as a part of a final budget agreement with the White House by mid- ...
NationsBank takes on groups serving military bases overseas.(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 1995; ... Credit unions that serve overseas military bases are bracing for a competitive battle with NationsBank Corp., which is expanding onto their turf.Under a new five-year contract, the Department of Defense will pay NationsBank $502 million to set up shop on installations in Europe, ...
Chase, Chemical at odds on private bank strategy.(impending merger creates conflict)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 1995; ... Chase Manhattan Corp. and Chemical Banking Corp. could have some big decisions to make when they get around to sorting out how to serve affluent clients after they merge next year.In recent years, the giant New York banks have gone opposite ways in catering to their well-heeled ...
Money fund assets off for first time in months.(August 30, 1995 statistics)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 1995; ... After record gains, assets in money market funds dipped a bit last week for the first time in 11 weeks.As of Aug. 30, money market funds in the United States held $734.06 billion, down $1.59 billion from the previous week, according to the Investment Company Institute, a ...
Security First betting on partnerships.(chooses partnerships over acquisitions)
Sep 05, 1995; ... Security First Group has developed a distinctive survival strategy in the crowded world of investment product marketers.Grow by buying competitors? The idea makes executives at Los Angeles- based Security First queasy.Instead the company, which helps 96 banks run annuity ...
Mellon unit offering employee benefits services.(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 1995; ... Dreyfus Retirement Services is offering help to large companies that want to cut down on the cost of managing retirement accounts and disseminating information to their employees.The unit of Mellon Bank Corp., has started a "benefits outsourcing" service that is sold along with ...
Ohio Insurance Dept. ordered to decide on Huntington application.(Huntington Bancshares, application for property insurance license)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 1995; ... The Ohio Supreme Court has ordered the state's Department of Insurance to rule on a Huntington Bancshares unit's application for a property insurance license.The order, handed down last Wednesday, ends a standoff between the department and the Columbus-based banking company, which ...
Deere's credit arm sows bumper crop of loans. (John Deere Credit Co., farm equipment financing)(includes article on Illinois Bank emulating Deere)
Sep 05, 1995; ... John Deere Credit in recent years has outpaced banks in farm-loan growth rates, revving up a multibillion-dollar equipment financing engine unmatched in the private sector.Today, the financing arm of the giant maker of farm implements is the monster truck of equipment financing, ...
Fidelity alliance aimed at bank trust units and fund sales efforts.(alliance between Fidelity Investments and Broadway and Seymour Inc.)
Sep 05, 1995; ... Fidelity Investments and Broadway & Seymour Inc. say their new marketing and technical alliance is meant to help banks streamline their trust and brokerage operationsThe agreement between the Boston-based mutual fund giant and Broadway & Seymour, a leading provider of trust ...
AT&T and American Express pile extras on college cards.(AT&T Universal Card Services, airline ticket discounts for credit cards)
Sep 05, 1995; ... AT&T Universal Card Services Corp. and American Express Co. are upping the ante in the competitive college market segment just as the new school year is beginning.Without media fanfare, in August, American Express began marketing its revolving credit Optima card to college ...
Upbeat response to Chase deal: we'll run rings around them. (mortgage bankers respond to news of merger proposed between Chemical Banking Corp. and Chase Manhattan Corp.)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 1995; ... Some mortgage bankers are gleeful about the planned merger of Chase Manhattan Corp. and Chemical Banking Corp."I love it," said Donnell Smith, executive vice president at Market Street Mortgage, Clearwater, Fla."I can work more closely with my 120 people than they can ...
Environmental risk data available on-line. (for any U.S. property)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 1995 ... A data base providing information on environmental risks for any property in the United States is available on-line to residential mortgage lenders and appraisers.The profiles, from ...
Strides in technology need to be matched on personnel front. (mortgage industry)
Sep 05, 1995; ... Technology and easier access to capital have allowed mortgage companies to grow quickly over the past decade. In the process they have revamped their operations to take advantage of new tools.Yet these changes have occurred unevenly, as we can see by looking at three areas of the ...