American Banker back issues from June 1997:
Despite boom, some economists see growth slowing in second half. (1997)(Brief Article)
Jun 02, 1997; ... The economy is going to slow down. The questions are how and when it will happen.The expansion, now in its seventh year, may soon show signs of advanced age, for example, rapid consumer debt growth and a widening trade deficit. More probably, rising interest rates will set the ...
Fleet makes a splash, lending $260M to R.I. mall developer. (Fleet National Bank, Rhode Island developer Commonwealth Development Group)
Jun 02, 1997; ... In one of the biggest construction loans of the decade in New England, Fleet National Bank is arranging a $260 million loan for a 1.3 million square-foot shopping mall in downtown Providence, R.I.The unit of Fleet Financial Group Inc. has fully underwritten the five year term loan ...
Washington Mutual CEO romances N.Y. investors. (Kerry K. Killinger)
Jun 02, 1997; ... Like a politician hoping to nail down a victory with an election eve campaign blitz, Washington Mutual Inc. chief executive Kerry K. Killinger was in New York Friday wooing investors."The market is speaking," Mr. Killinger declared over a new age lunch of a California chicken ...
Citicorp stock turns volatile on fears for its Asian units.
Jun 02, 1997; ... Citicorp's stock went on a wild ride last week as investor fears mounted-and then abated-about the company's operations in Southeast Asia.The shares surged on Friday by about 4% after plunging more than 2% the day before. Several large hedge funds had shorted the stock on reports ...
Ahmanson says deal with Great Western would make Wamu forfeit unitary status. (H.F. Ahmanson & Co. complaining to regulators about structure of Washington Mutual Inc. acquisition of Great Western Financial Corp.)
Jun 02, 1997; ... H.F. Ahmanson & Co. is complaining to federal regulators about the way Washington Mutual Inc. wants to structure its acquisition of Great Western Financial Corp.Washington Mutual plans to merge Los Angeles-based Great Western into a thrift it acquired last year, American Savings ...
Both of the Treasury's reform options mix banking, commerce.(Column)
Jun 02, 1997; ... Clinton administration officials claim the contentious question of mixing banking and commerce is a political call that only Congress can make.When he takes a seat Tuesday before the House Banking Committee, Treasury Secretary Robert E. Rubin will give lawmakers two seemingly cut ...
Protege succeeds mentor at PNC's flagship bank. (Sylvan M. Holzer replaces Edward V. Randall Jr. as ceo PNC Bank)
Jun 02, 1997; ... PNC Bank Corp. has replaced a veteran banker at the helm of its flagship Pittsburgh bank with another company yeoman.Sylvan M. "Sy" Holzer, 48, was named president and chief executive officer of PNC Bank, Pittsburgh. He took his new role Monday, succeeding Edward V. "Ned" Randall ...
Harbinger licenses cash management software to Firstar. (Harbinger Corp.)(Brief Article)
Jun 02, 1997; ... Harbinger Corp. has licensed its cash management software to Firstar Corp. and reportedly also reached licensing agreements with Mellon Bank Corp. and Fleet Financial Group Inc.The Atlanta-based technology vendor provides PC-based software to the banking industry, which then ...
Wall St. warms to bank tech stocks. (especially electronic commerce and alternative payment systems)
Jun 02, 1997; ... Wall Street appears to be renewing its passion for a number of bank technology stocks, particularly those that provide electronic commerce and alternative forms of payment systems to banks.The reasoning, according to analysts, is this: The banking industry, which is currently ...
Morgan adopts strong encryption for customers. (J.P. Morgan & Co. using Entrust Technologies Inc. software)
Jun 02, 1997; ... To keep communications confidential, J.P. Morgan & Co. has been using encryption software from Entrust Technologies Inc. with some of its customers.The New York-based banking company was interested in using public key cryptography and chose Entrust's software because it was "based ...
Small Hawaiian bank wins big in legislative fight on interstate branching. (a bill to remove restrictions on interstate branching died in legislative committee)
Jun 02, 1997; ... Hawaii's smallest bank has won its legislative struggle against the state's Goliath, Pacific Century Financial Corp.A bill that would have removed restrictions on interstate branching in 2001 died in a state legislative committee after lawmakers ran out of time and the will-to push ...
Calif. jumbo specialist takes itself off market. (First Republic Bancorp. has decided to remain independent)
Jun 02, 1997; ... Just a few months after hiring an investment banker to explore a sale, San Francisco's First Republic Bancorp has called off the search.The $2.2 billion-asset thrift on Tuesday told its investment banker, Montgomery Securities, that it has decided to remain independent. First ...
Shareholders approve sale to Temple-Inland. (California Financial Holding Co., parent of Stockton Savings Bank)(Brief Article)
Jun 02, 1997; ... Shareholders of California Financial Holding Co., parent of Stockton Savings Bank, have approved its sale to Dallas-based Temple-Inland Inc.Temple-Inland, a paper, corrugated packaging, and building products manufacturer, is paying $150 million in common stock and cash for the $1.3 ...
OTS lets Oregon thrift buy 25 Wells branches. (Office of Thrift Supervision, Klamath First Bancorp, Wells Fargo Bank)(Brief Article)
Jun 02, 1997; ... Klamath First Bancorp has received approval from the Office of Thrift Supervision to acquire 25 branches of Wells Fargo Bank.The branches, all in rural Oregon, have more than $200 ...
Known for pushing sale, investor hits Missouri thrift's plan to buy. (Jerome H. Davis, Lexington B&L Financial Corp. not ready to buy Lafayette Bancshares)
Jun 02, 1997; ... Activist shareholder Jerome H. Davis isn't happy with a small Missouri thrift's plan to buy a local bank company.Mr. Davis said the thrift, Lexington B&L Financial Corp., isn't financially ready to take on the acquisition. Instead he wants it to spend the money to buy back its ...
Plugging into the Electronic Tax Payment System. (Electronic Federal Tax Payment System for businesses)(Column)
Jun 02, 1997; ... More than 1.2 million business taxpayers are required to make their federal tax payments electronically through the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System this year.Other businesses will be phased into the program over the next four years on the basis of their tax obligations. By ...
S. Carolina accountants team with Wachovia. (South Carolina Association of Certified Public Accountants)(Brief Article)
Jun 02, 1997 ... Wachovia Corp. turned a casual referral network with the largest accountants association in South Carolina into a formal link.Wachovia employees will speak at the accountants' conferences and the bank will provide materials for special training seminars. The bank and the ...
Big banks write more small-business loans. (5 largest banks increased loans under $100,000)(Brief Article)
Jun 02, 1997 ... The five largest bank lenders to small businesses made 23% more business loans of less than $100,000 in the year ended last June 30 than in the preceding 12 months, according to a ...
Slim chance seen of mergers causing credit crunch. (Federal Reserve Board Governor Laurence Meyer speaking at New York University conference)
Jun 02, 1997; ... Evidence is scarce for an impending small-business credit crunch due to bank mergers, researchers concluded at a recent conference, and Fed Governor Laurence Meyer said he doesn't expect one."Even if the merging institutions decrease their small-business lending substantially, the ...
MGIC signals its strength with $250 million buyback. (MGIC Investment Corp.)(Brief Article)
Jun 02, 1997; ... MGIC Investment Corp., the nation's largest mortgage insurer, will buy back as much as $250 million of its common stock.A spokesman for the Milwaukee-based company said it will finance the stock repurchase program through a bank loan.MGIC has received a commitment from a ...
New Jersey's acquisitive Summit Bancorp builds loan business on branches.
Jun 02, 1997; ... Summit Mortgage president Gerald L. Facciani has almost a million reasons to step up lending through bank branches.The actual tally is 945,000-the number of New Jersey households that bank with Summit Bancorp but do not have mortgages with it.Mr. Facciani sees plenty of ...
Headed for merger, thrift halts buyback. (RCSB Financial Corp., Rochester Community Savings Bank holding company planning merger with Charter One Financial Inc.)(Brief Article)
Jun 02, 1997 ... The holding company for Rochester Community Savings Bank has terminated its repurchase authorization because of a deal to merge with Cleveland-based Charter One Financial Inc.In October the board of RCSB Financial Inc. authorized the repurchase of 1.5 million shares; 947,100 of ...
Merrill exec pushes for 'umbrella' regulator; former Comptroller wants fewer restrictions on entering businesses. (Merrill Lynch Chairman of global financial institutions John G. Heilmann)(Interview)
Jun 02, 1997; ... When this Merrill Lynch executive goes to Washington, he takes experience gained from years inside the Beltway.Yet John G. Heimann, who served as comptroller of the currency during the Carter administration, is now chairman of global financial institutions at Merrill.In ...
Study: platform plus broker sales equals success. (Bank Securities Association study, hybrid bank investment programs are most successful)
Jun 02, 1997; ... The most successful bank investment programs have branch sales forces as well as dedicated brokers, a study commissioned by the Bank Securities Association shows.Bank branch investment salespeople do well when deposit products are popular, and brokers do well when the stock market ...
CIBC securities unit targets middle-market acquisition finance market. (CIBC Wood Gundy Securities Corp.)(Brief Article)
Jun 02, 1997; ... CIBC Wood Gundy Securities Corp., the U.S. investment banking and trading subsidiary of the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, is expanding its high- yield group with an acquisition finance unit that will focus on the middle market.CIBC, like many other banks, is looking to take ...
Equifax rival demands privacy probe. (shareholder calls for investigation of CDB Infotek)
Jun 02, 1997; ... As it moves to spin off a recently acquired unit, Equifax Inc. is being entangled in a dispute over an alleged breach of privacy.A shareholder is demanding that the board investigate whether the information services company knew or should have known about what he claims was misuse ...
1st USA issuing card for Tampa Bay Devils. (First USA Inc. issuing affinity credit card for Major League Baseball expansion team, Tampa Bay Devil Rays)(Brief Article)
Jun 02, 1997 ... First USA Inc. is issuing an affinity credit card for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, an expansion baseball team scheduled to begin Major League competition next year.The no-fee product, introduced early to capitalize on local fan enthusiasm, has an introductory interest rate of 5.9% for ...
Mellon hires EPS unit to process transactions. (Mellon Bank Corp., Electronic Payment Services Inc. subsidiary Buypass Corp.)(Brief Article)
Jun 02, 1997 ... Buypass Corp., a subsidiary of Electronic Payment Services Inc., said Mellon Bank Corp. has hired it to process credit, debit, and electronic benefits transfer transactions.Terms of the deal were not ...
Formerly hot monoline sector now getting chilly reception. (investors do not favor monoline credit card companies)
Jun 02, 1997; ... Despite powerful investor Michael F. Price's recently revealed 7% stake in Advanta Corp., Wall Street analysts remain cool toward shares of monoline credit card issuers.Only a year ago, the fabulous foursome of monolines-MBNA Corp., First USA Inc., Capital One Financial Corp., and ...
Contifinancial Corp. offers 2.8M shares. (public offering at $33 per share)(Brief Article)
Jun 02, 1997 ... Contifinancial Corp. on Friday announced a public offering of 2.8 million shares, at $33 per share.Despite poor market conditions throughout the subprime ...
Alleged spree highlights danger of identity theft.
Jun 03, 1997; ... It first appeared last October as a blip in a checking account that had seen little activity. Account officers at Wilmington National Trust in Delaware made inquiries about the dozens of checks for $2,000 and $3,000 that suddenly started appearing in Patricia Ann Matthews' account, all ...
Treasury aims to shield banks from the states' insurance laws.
Jun 03, 1997; ... The Clinton administration wants to give banks new protections from state insurance laws, a move sure to stoke the already hot debate over financial modernization.Treasury Secretary Robert E. Rubin will unveil legislation today that goes beyond a March 1996 Supreme Court decision ...
Freddie Mac launches program of securitizing subprime mortgages.(Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp.)
Jun 03, 1997; ... Freddie Mac has launched a major subprime mortgage program by purchasing and guaranteeing $227 million of loans originated by a unit of First Union Corp.Under the new program, Freddie Mac's guarantee, which gives mortgage securities a triple-A rating, will be applied to as many as ...
FASB expected to propose relaxing its controversial derivatives reporting plan.(Financial Accounting Standards Board)
Jun 03, 1997; ... The Financial Accounting Standards Board is expected to propose on Wednesday that one of the more controversial provisions in its derivatives accounting plan be relaxed.Industry sources said the board now wants to let banks and others effectively defer reporting unrealized gains ...
States must decide on taxing of farm lenders.(Brief Article)
Jun 03, 1997 ... The Supreme Court on Monday unanimously dismissed a lower federal court ruling exempting production credit associations from state taxes.Overturning a 1996 ruling by the Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, the high court ruled that the matter must be decided in state, not ...
FDIC survey: real estate markets keep improving.(Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.)
Jun 03, 1997; ... Real estate markets continued to improve this spring, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s latest survey of examiners and liquidators.The FDIC said its residential and commercial real estate survey for February through April yielded a composite score of 71, up three ...
In revenue hunt, new businesses seen inviting risks.
Jun 03, 1997; ... The hunt for higher earnings is driving banks into businesses that create new risks, according to senior U.S. and foreign bankers at the annual International Monetary Conference.Bankers and regulators assembled here named asset management, emerging markets, investment banking, and ...
Lack of scale underlay Wells decision to sell institutional custody business.(Brief Article)
Jun 03, 1997; ... Wells Fargo & Co. says it is selling its institutional custody operation to Bank of New York Co. because it doesn't have enough scale in the business to compete.The deal is expected to close before the end of the year. Wells sold its corporate trust business to the New York bank ...
Famed '80s dealmaker lives out alternative to riding CEO track.(Stephen T. McLin of Eureka Bank)
Jun 03, 1997; ... One of the best-known and most innovative banking dealmakers in the 1980s, Stephen T. McLin, resurfaced last month.He got a mention in the local press May 9 when he announced the sale of his thrift, $2.2 billion-asset Eureka Bank of Foster City, Calif., to Bay View Capital Corp., ...
The ins and outs of opening and closing a branch.(branch bank)(Column)
Jun 03, 1997; ... Location, location, location. The old adage is becoming even more significant in this era of electronic commerce as banks decide whether to close branches or add them.Opening a branch is costly, but the face-to-face contact is a way to offset the impersonality of remote banking. ...
The top performers follow different roads to profits.(bank profits)(Brief Article)
Jun 03, 1997; ... Ronald Umphress offers a simple reason why his bank is so profitable year after year."We don't charge country club memberships to the bank," said Mr. Umphress, president and chief executive of Citizens State Bank, Princeton, Tex. In fact, he said, executives get "no perks at all." ...
Quarrel with New Jersey thrift patched up, investor group wants to hike stake to 25%.(Wayne Bancorp)(Brief Article)
Jun 03, 1997; ... Just months after making peace with a New Jersey thrift, an investor group is asking for regulatory permission to own almost 25% of it.The group, led by Lawrence B. Seidman and Richard Whitman, already owns 10.4%. That makes it the largest shareholder in $250 million-asset Wayne ...
Beleaguered thrift ordered to hold meeting.(IBS Financial Corp.)(Brief Article)
Jun 03, 1997; ... In a victory for an investor group led by Lawrence B. Seidman, a New Jersey state court Friday ordered IBS Financial Corp., Cherry Hill, to hold its annual meeting on Aug. 4.The court said shareholders of record June 27 would be permitted to ...
Firms eye thrift charters to compete with banks.
Jun 03, 1997; ... When Principal Financial Group applied for a savings and loan charter in December, some observers predicted more insurers would follow its lead.Last month some of them began to make their moves.State Farm Mutual Auto Insurance Co., the largest home and auto insurer in ...
KeyCorp targets new grads with short-term health policy at bargain-basement rates.(Brief Article)
Jun 03, 1997; ... Just in time for graduation season, KeyCorp is pitching short-term health insurance to recent college graduates who are between their parents' insurance coverage and their own.Tempocare is inexpensive, with monthly premiums as low as $20 a month, and offers coverage for one to six ...
Private bankers scrutinize client profitability data.
Jun 03, 1997; ... As private bankers widen their product and service offerings, they are accounting for how profitable their sales efforts are.Many banks, including PNC Bank Corp., Pittsburgh, are building vast data bases to discern how individual accounts and sales methods contribute to profits. ...
Spectrem Group buys Access Research.(Brief Article)
Jun 03, 1997; ... Spectrem Group Inc., a San Francisco-based consulting firm, has bought Access Research Inc., which specializes in the retirement market.Terms of the deal, which closed May 29, were not disclosed.The acquisition beefs up Spectrem's research on older Americans-an area ...
Huntington adding funds to retail menu.(Huntington Bancshares)(Brief Article)
Jun 03, 1997; ... Huntington Bancshares said it will offer retail customers two mutual funds once sold exclusively to trust clients. The funds are: Monitor Income Equity Fund and Monitor Short & Intermediate Fixed Income Securities.The company's entire family of nine Monitor Funds is now available ...
Goldman, Lazard plan realty stakes. (Brief Article)
Jun 03, 1997; ... Goldman, Sachs & Co. and two other investors will make a $300 million capital infusion into Millennium Partners, a privately held real estate development firm in New York, Millennium said Monday.Goldman will make the investment through the Whitehall Fund, its private real estate ...
First Union gets Fed approval to use equity powers.(First Union Capital Markets allowed to deal in stocks)(Brief Article)
Jun 03, 1997; ... First Union Corp. has gotten the go-ahead to underwrite and deal in equities.The Federal Reserve Board on Monday granted First Union Capital Markets, the bank's section 20 subsidiary, permission to activate the equity powers it received in 1995.The Charlotte, N.C., ...
First Union says loan sales will give it competitive edge.(contract with Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. to securitize subprime home equity loans)(Brief Article)
Jun 03, 1997; ... First Union Corp. sees significant benefits in teaming with Freddie Mac to securitize home equity loans.Executives at the banking company - and Wall Street researchers - reason that with Freddie Mac's guarantee on subprime securities, investors won't demand as high a return, ...
Merger could mean more business for HFS unit.(PHH Mortgage; merger with CUC International Inc.)(Brief Article)
Jun 03, 1997; ... The merger agreement between real estate giant HFS Inc. and direct marketer CUC International Inc. could mean more opportunities for HFS' newly acquired mortgage unit.Terrence Edwards, president and chief executive of the unit, PHH Mortgage, said in a phone interview Friday that ...
Chase Exec welcomes spur to revamp by year 2000.(Denis O'Leary on bank rectification of computer systems to deal with year 2000 problem)
Jun 03, 1997; ... As banks hurtle toward the immovable deadline for fixing the so-called year 2000 problem, at least one bank technologist sees a silver lining in the potentially disastrous thunderhead of a technology issue.Denis O'Leary, top technology executive at Chase Manhattan Corp., conceded ...
Card reader using software by V-One.(SCM Microsystems Inc.)(Brief Article)
Jun 03, 1997 ... V-One Corp. said its SmartGate security software has been adopted as a component in SCM Microsystems Inc.'s SwapSmart smart card reader.The combination of systems will allow organizations to conduct secure communications and transactions over the Internet using desktop and notebook ...
Banctec venture develops a fast grayscale scanner.(Brief Article)
Jun 03, 1997; ... Banctec Inc. and Picture Elements Inc. have jointly developed an image scanner that can capture grayscale at high speeds.Grayscale is a term for the varying degrees of light and dark printing that appear on documents.Early versions of document imaging equipment were ...
Subprime lender seeking one more turnaround.(Chief Executive Officer George C. Evans to turn around Search Financial Services Inc.)
Jun 03, 1997; ... There is little evidence to suggest George C. Evans has ever ducked a fight. While a boxer and football player as a young man, his nose was broken 12 times.Maybe that's why, over his 37-year career in subprime auto lending, he's been attracted to rescuing companies that have taken ...
Losses starting to hit 'near-prime' auto lenders.(United Acceptance Corp.; Arcadia Financial Ltd.)
Jun 03, 1997; ... The problems that for months have plagued subprime auto lenders unexpected losses, rising provisions, the inability to recover on bad loans- are starting to migrate to auto financiers whose customers have better credit.Last Friday, Union Acceptance Corp., an auto lender catering to ...
Clinton hit as waffling on mixing banks, commerce.
Jun 04, 1997; ... Congress risks losing control over mergers of banks and commercial firms if lawmakers fail to set concrete rules soon, a senior Democratic lawmaker warned Tuesday.Rep. Barney Frank said during a House Banking Committee hearing that cross-industry mergers are likely to continue no ...
Signet slashing jobs, dumping branches in overhaul.(Signet Banking Corp.)
Jun 04, 1997; ... Looking to reposition itself as national direct marketer of financial services, Signet Banking Corp. on Tuesday unveiled a sweeping overhaul of its branch structure, business lines, and technology.The $12 billion-asset banking company, based in Richmond, Va., said it intends to ...
Visa attacks MasterCard's Mondex as potential threat to member banks.
Jun 04, 1997; ... Visa has launched another offensive against MasterCard's Mondex smart card system, this time with ammunition that is anything but technical.Taking a tack very different from recent arguments over operating systems and standards, Visa has its sights on the very structure of ...
Visa, MasterCard asked to ease surcharge rules.(ATM surcharges)(Brief Article)
Jun 04, 1997; ... Hoping to undermine a ban on ATM surcharges, bank and thrift trade groups are asking Visa U.S.A. and MasterCard International to loosen the rules governing these fees."Each of our organizations shares a common goal of avoiding the dangerous precedent of federal price-setting," ...
B of A funding community activist training.(Brief Article)
Jun 04, 1997; ... Bank of America Community Development Bank unveiled a $1.1 million program Tuesday to train activists to revitalize neighborhoods.The program will provide 30 days of schooling to 105 executives from community groups. The bank is funding the project ...
FDIC pushes new rules for acquiring deposits.(Brief Article)
Jun 04, 1997; ... The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. is proposing to streamline notification requirements for banks that acquire deposits. Currently, banks must notify the FDIC within 30 days after assuming deposits from another institution so the FDIC can terminate the latter's ...
Fed board charges, fines Japanese bank officer.(Toshihiko Araki of the Bank of Yokohama)(Brief Article)
Jun 04, 1997; ... The Federal Reserve Board has issued an enforcement action against an officer at the Bank of Yokohama.Toshihiko Araki, who works at the institution's New York branch, was fined $5,000 for an ...
Senate fund-raising probers subpoena 20 depository institutions.(Brief Article)
Jun 04, 1997; ... Twenty banks, thrifts, and credit unions were subpoenaed Tuesday by a Senate committee investigating fund-raising irregularities in last year's elections.The banks named in the subpoenas included Chase Manhattan Bank, New York; Bank of America, Texas; Chevy Chase Savings Bank, ...