American Banker back issues from February 2006:
Turned Away Six Times, Still Trying.
Feb 01, 2006; ... For evidence that hostile bank deals face long odds, look no further than TrustCo Bank Corp NY in upstate New York. The $2.8 billion-asset bank is 0 for 6 over the past six years. In January shareholders of Ballston Spa Bancorp Inc. in Ballston Spa, N.Y., became the ...
Shelby Lays Out 2006 Agenda: Senator also sides with Bush on Baker's bill.(George W. Bush)
Feb 01, 2006; ... WASHINGTON -- Senate Banking Committee Chairman Richard Shelby said Tuesday that data security, an overhaul of the flood insurance program, and reforming government-sponsored enterprise regulation are top priorities for his panel this year. The Alabama Republican also supported ...
Mellon Has New CEO, And Outlook Is Different: One analyst sees Kelly turning it into an M&A 'machine'.
Feb 01, 2006; ... Mellon Financial Corp. could be poised to transform itself from rumored takeout target to acquirer with the hiring of Wachovia Corp. chief financial officer Robert P. Kelly as its new leader, analysts said. Mr. Kelly, 51, will take over Feb. 13, the day longtime chairman and ...
In Brief: JPM Report Overhaul: Dimon Says It Again.(Brief Article)
Feb 01, 2006 ... JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s chief executive reiterated Tuesday that it will overhaul reporting to show more clearly how its consumer bank is doing. The change will start with its first-quarter report, a spokesman said. "We are changing a little bit how we are disclosing ...
In Brief: Judge to Resolve Sovereign Suits in 1Q.(Sovereign Bancorp Inc.)(Brief Article)
Feb 01, 2006 ... A federal judge set a timetable Tuesday for the litigation between Sovereign Bancorp Inc. and its largest shareholder, Relational Investors LLC. The San Diego fund manager is challenging Sovereign's decision to postpone its annual meeting and sell a 19.8% stake to Banco ...
Calif. Court Restores Suit vs. Wells.(Brief Article)
Feb 01, 2006; ... A California appeals court has reinstated a Wells Fargo & Co. customer's class action against the San Francisco company over the imposition of overdraft fees on debit card point of sale transactions. In a ruling issued last week, the Court of Appeal for the Fourth Circuit in San ...
Months After Hurricanes, La. Official Still Lobbying.
Feb 01, 2006; ... WASHINGTON -- Peter Gwaltney is back here this week, advocating for Louisiana banks that are still reeling months after hurricanes Katrina and Rita blew through the state. On the Louisiana Bankers Association chief executive's wish list: improved mail delivery; lending help from ...
NCUA: Michigan CU's Disclosure Documents Faulty.(National Credit Union Administration)
Feb 01, 2006; ... The National Credit Union Administration has outlined nearly two dozen concerns about the disclosure materials drafted by a $1.8 billion-asset Dearborn, Mich., credit union seeking to become a mutual savings bank. The agency lacks the power to stop DFCU Financial Federal Credit ...
Ace Will Join Texas Pack In Brokering Loans as CSO.(credit service organization)
Feb 01, 2006; ... Ace Cash Express Inc., which had bucked the trend among payday lenders of operating in Texas as a "credit service organization," now says it plans to adopt that business model this year. The Irving, Tex., company originally saw too much legal risk in the CSO setup, in which ...
Profit Off, Diebold to Cut $100M of Costs in 3 Years.
Feb 01, 2006; ... Diebold Inc. has unveiled an aggressive cost-cutting plan in response to a fourth-quarter plunge in income. Thomas W. Swidarski, the new president and chief executive of the automated teller machine maker, said he will eliminate more than $100 million in costs over three years ....
In Brief: Integro: 2 Principals For Chicago Office.(Integro)(Brief Article)
Feb 01, 2006 ... Integro, a New York insurance brokerage and risk management firm, announced Tuesday that Thomas M. Biggio and Allison Ast had joined its Chicago office as principals. Mr. Biggio has nearly three decades of casualty and property brokerage experience, most recently as director of ...
In Brief: Canada Wealth Firm To Compete on Price.(MD Management Ltd.)(Brief Article)
Feb 01, 2006 ... MD Management Ltd., an Ottawa independent financial services company that targets Canadian doctors, said Tuesday that it had started a low-fee wealth management firm for the general investment community. Stratos Wealth Management, which also is based in Ottawa, said it will try ...
In Brief: Calamos Saw 15% Asset Growth in '05.(Brief Article)
Feb 01, 2006 ... Calamos Asset Management Inc. of Naperville, Ill., has reported that its assets under management grew 15% last year, to $43.8 billion at Dec. 31. The company said on Monday that revenues rose 24% in the fourth quarter, to $113.5 million, from a year earlier. Operating income ...
In Brief: Hancock Life Policy Has Preretiree Boons.(John Hancock)(Brief Article)
Feb 01, 2006 ... John Hancock has announced the introduction of Accumulation VUL, a variable universal life policy that it says offers cash values and retirement income potential to preretirees, especially those who are maximizing contributions to their qualified retirement plans but still face a ...
AIG Moves Unit To Adviser Group For Its Synergies.
Feb 01, 2006; ... American International Group Inc.'s reorganization of a subsidiary broker-dealer, American General Securities Inc., is intended to let it take advantage of the technology and sales support shared by AIG Advisor Group, the company says. The move will put the subsidiary, which is ...
FDIC Says XBRL-Only Format Is Good Fit for Call Reports.(extensible business reporting language)
Feb 01, 2006; ... Submitting and reviewing banks' quarterly call reports is a complicated task, but the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. says a shift to a different file format has dramatically simplified the process. Bank regulators have long published their instructions for submitting call ...
In Brief: Fiserv: No More Quarterly Guidance.
Feb 01, 2006; ... Fiserv Inc., its fourth-quarter revenue swelled by a contract termination that will bite this year, will no longer issue quarter-by-quarter earnings guidance, its new president and chief executive said Tuesday Instead, Jeffery W. Yabuki said, each quarter the technology vendor ...
In Brief: Ex-First Data CEO Makes $51M on Options.(Charles T. Fote)(Brief Article)
Feb 01, 2006; ... Charles T. Fote, the former chairman and chief executive of First Data Corp., made almost $51 million Friday by exercising his stock options and then selling the shares. According to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Mr. Fote exercised options for 2,369,584 ...
In Brief: Shareholder Suit vs. Hypercom Dismissed.(Brief Article)
Feb 01, 2006; ... A shareholder lawsuit against the point of sale terminal company Hypercom Corp. and two former executives has been dismissed, the Phoenix company said. Last year six shareholder suits were filed in response to Hypercom's restatement in February of financials for the first three ...
Countrywide: Margin Pressure Drove Miss; Bank Kept Growing.
Feb 01, 2006; ... Pricing competition, an increase in secondary-market concerns about credit, and shrinking warehousing spreads left Countrywide Financial Corp. with disappointing fourth-quarter results. But Countrywide's servicing and banking earnings offset much of the pain. Earnings from ...
Spreads Spurred Fannie to Expand Portfolio in Dec.
Feb 01, 2006; ... Fannie Mae's portfolio grew in December, for the first time in more than a year, because the government-sponsored enterprise took advantage of wider spreads early in the month and in November. The portfolio grew at a 21.4% annualized rate, to $727 billion, and ended the year ...
In Brief: Senate Approves Bernanke for Fed Post.(Brief Article)
Feb 01, 2006; ... The Senate overwhelmingly approved Ben Bernanke's nomination as the Federal Reserve Board's 13th chairman by voice vote Tuesday. Mr. Bernanke will begin a four-year term as the Fed chairman and a 14-year term as a Fed governor. As the chairman, he will succeed Alan Greenspan, ...
In Brief: Western Sierra Postpones Profit Report.(Brief Article)
Feb 01, 2006; ... Western Sierra Bancorp in Cameron Park, Calif., said it is delaying the release of its fourth-quarter and full-year results until it straightens out a tax matter. The $1.2 billion-asset Western Sierra said Tuesday that it may have incorrectly accounted for the income taxes on ...
In Brief: Argent Confirms Plan to Idle 600 Workers.(Brief Article)
Feb 01, 2006; ... Argent Mortgage Co., the subprime mortgage wholesale arm, of Ameriquest's parent, ACC Capital Holdings, is laying off about 600 employees, 15% of its work force, a spokesman confirmed late Tuesday. "In cyclical industries such as mortgage lending, periodic work-force reductions ...
In Brief: Citi Veteran Magner Joins Schwab Board.(Brief Article)
Feb 01, 2006; ... Marjorie Magner, the former head of Citigroup Inc.'s consumer group, has joined the Charles Schwab Corp. board of directors. Ms. Magner, 56, worked for Citigroup for nearly 20 years; she resigned last October as the chairwoman and CEO of its global consumer group. Schwab said ...
In Brief: Data on 239,000 Card Customers Exposed.(Brief Article)
Feb 01, 2006; ... An employee's error has compromised the credit card information of roughly 239,000 Boston Globe subscribers. The employee printed out a customer list that contained subscriber names, credit card numbers, and expiration dates. The list was used to wrap bundles of Sunday's Boston ...
State Bancorp Tanks on News of Verdict.
Feb 01, 2006; ... State Bancorp Inc.'s share price plummeted more nearly 17% Tuesday, after a Long Island jury found the Jericho, N.Y., company liable for $44 million of damages in a 4-year-old fraud case. The plaintiff, HSA Residential Mortgage Services of Texas, claimed that the $1.5 ...
Street Responds Quickly To Issues at W Holding.
Feb 01, 2006; ... Analysts and investors took W Holding Co. Inc.'s saying it may have to restate some results as more bad news for Puerto Rican banking companies. W Holding, of Mayaguez, announced after the market closed Monday that it would postpone filing fourth-quarter financial results while ...
Can Upstart Tech Vendor Buy Into Small-Bank Niche?(Private Business Inc.)
Feb 02, 2006; ... With three acquisitions in the past two months, Private Business Inc. is refocusing itself as a technology provider to community banks. The strategy was set by the financial technology vendor's chief executive, Lynn Boggs, formerly the president and chief operating officer of ...
Processor Deal a Hotel Play for Nova.(Nova Information Systems Inc.)
Feb 02, 2006; ... Nova Information Systems Inc.'s $433 million acquisition of First Horizon National Corp.'s merchant processing business is a bet that the two companies combined can overcome the growth hurdles that each business faced on its own. Nova, which is owned by U.S. Bancorp of ...
Zions Tries A Different Approach for Ore. Entry: Start-up to specialize in small businesses; following Wash. model.
Feb 02, 2006; ... The acquisitive Zions Bancorp. is trying something different in Oregon: a start-up bank. Its newest subsidiary, Commerce Bank of Oregon, catering exclusively to small businesses and their owners, is to begin full operation next Thursday. The Salt Lake City company ...
First U.S. Step by Banorte, With Second Deal Coming.(Grupo Financiero Banorte of Monterrey, Mexico)
Feb 02, 2006; ... With its deal for a majority stake in a Texas bank, Grupo Financiero Banorte of Monterrey, Mexico, aims to grab both sides of the remittance business. "Remittance is going to be the wave of the future," Banorte chief executive Luis Pena Kegel said in an interview Monday. ...
In Brief: B of A Has No Appetite for M&A Abroad.(Bank of America Corp.)(Brief Article)
Feb 02, 2006; ... Bank of America Corp. chairman, president, and chief executive Kenneth D. Lewis said Wednesday that the $1.3 trillion-asset Charlotte company has no immediate interest in buying a bank in Europe, Asia, or Latin America. Mr. Lewis said during a conference in New York hosted by ...
In Brief: TD Banknorth Closes Hudson United Deal.(Brief Article)
Feb 02, 2006; ... TD Banknorth Inc. said on Wednesday that it has acquired Hudson United Bancorp, of Mahwah, N.J. Also, TD Banknorth said it has increased its stock buyback program by 2 million shares; it is now authorized to repurchase 10.5 million. Toronto-Dominion Bank, which holds ...
In Brief: OCC Defends Realty Decisions.(Office of the Comptroller of the Currency)
Feb 02, 2006; ... In letters to lawmakers and the National Association of Realtors, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency defended its decision to let three national banks engage in commercial real estate development. The Realtors have criticized the agency, saying that national banks ...
In Brief: Bush Pushes Expansion of HSAs.(George W. Bush)(Brief Article)
Feb 02, 2006; ... President Bush used his State of the Union address Tuesday night to launch his plan to expand health savings accounts, which the administration has urged more banks to offer. "We will strengthen health savings accounts by making sure individuals and small-business employees can ...
FDIC Nomination: More Questions Than Answers.(Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.)
Feb 02, 2006; ... WASHINGTON -- Nearly a week after word emerged that Diana Taylor would not get the nomination to lead the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., observers are still mystified as to the reason. The surprising development and the fact that no name immediately surfaced as an alternative ...
Deposit Insurance Reform Clears House by 2 Votes.
Feb 02, 2006; ... WASHINGTON -- Lawmakers overcame the final hurdle on Wednesday to enactment of sweeping changes to the deposit insurance system, as the House voted 216 to 214 to approve legislation that included the reform provisions. The budget reconciliation bill has already been approved by ...
In Brief: Century, BlackRock End Pact.(Century Bancorp Inc., BlackRock Inc.)(Brief Article)
Feb 02, 2006; ... Century Bancorp Inc. of Medford, Mass., announced Wednesday that it had terminated its management agreement with BlackRock Inc. Under the 15-month-old agreement, BlackRock, which is majority owned by PNC Financial Services Group Inc., had managed Century's available-for-sale ...
In Brief: Hancock Earnings Climb 21%.(Brief Article)
Feb 02, 2006; ... Hancock Holding Co., in Gulfport, Miss., said Wednesday that its fourth-quarter earnings increased 21% from the same quarter in 2004, to $19 million, despite the $5.7 million of pretax expenses the company incurred during the quarter as a result of Hurricane Katrina. But for the ...
In Brief: Charge for Ohio's First Financial.(Brief Article)
Feb 02, 2006; ... First Financial Bancorp of Hamilton, Ohio, said Wednesday that it would take a fourth-quarter charge of 10 cents a share as it sells $200 million of investment securities to restructure its balance sheet. The $3.7 billion-asset company said it expects the sale to improve its net ...
Executive Changes.
Feb 02, 2006; ... WEST Saehan Bancorp, which caters to Korean-Americans in Los Angeles, has hired Benjamin Hong, a banking veteran with long ties to that community, as its president and chief executive officer. Mr. Hong had been the president and CEO of Nara Bancorp until last year ....
U.S. Banking Companies with Highest Multiples of Net to Salary, Benefits: In the third quarter of 2005. Dollars in thousands.
Feb 02, 2006 ... Salaries and Return on Multiple Net income benefits average assets 1 Elgin Bancshares Inc. Ill. 6.30 $2,564 $407 3.16% 2 Amboy Bancorp. Old Bridge, N.J. 6.21 22,544 3,629 3.45 3 Dairyland Bank Holding Corp. La Crosse, Wis. 4.68 ...
MC Signs, Expands Tax Pacts.(MasterCard International)
Feb 02, 2006; ... MasterCard International signed a deal to reduce the fees consumers are charged for making tax payments online, and it expanded a similar arrangement. The Internal Revenue Service has authorized two vendors to process online tax payments. One of the vendors, Tier ...
In Brief: M&T Buys a Maryland Insurance Agency.(M&T Insurance Agency Inc., Hess Egan Hagerty & L'Hommedieu Inc.)(Brief Article)
Feb 02, 2006 ... M&T Insurance Agency Inc. said Wednesday that it had bought Hess Egan Hagerty & L'Hommedieu Inc., a commercial insurance and surety brokerage in Chevy Chase, Md. Hess Egan is to operate as a division of M&T Insurance. The agency's principals are to remain with it, and Robert E ....
In Brief: BNY Brokerage Expands Its Boston Office.(Brief Article)
Feb 02, 2006 ... BNY Brokerage Inc., a subsidiary of Bank of New York Co. and member of BNY Securities Group, has expanded the services offered in its Boston office by adding a sales trading desk and increasing its sales force, it said Wednesday. Richard Collett joined BNY Brokerage as head of ...
In Brief: 5 Allstate Encompass Companies Upgraded.(Brief Article)
Feb 02, 2006 ... A.M. Best Co. in Oldwick, N.J., has upgraded the financial strength ratings of four Encompass companies that are part of the Allstate Insurance Group of Northbrook, Ill., to A-plus, from A-minus, and issuer credit ratings to "aa" from "a-minus." Encompass Home and Auto Insurance ...
In Brief: Ameriprise Variables' Accumulation Shield.(Brief Article)
Feb 02, 2006 ... Ameriprise Financial Services Inc. announced it had added a guaranteed minimum accumulation benefit to its RiverSource lineup of variable annuities. RiverSource annuities are sold through the personal advisers of Ameriprise Financial as well as other distribution channels, the ...
BB&T Asset Unit Focuses On Ga.-Fla. Deals, Hiring.
Feb 02, 2006; ... BB&T Corp. says it plans to expand its asset management operation deeper into the Southeast through both organic growth and strategic acquisitions. Keith Karlawish, the president of BB&T Asset Management, said it has made three deals in the past two years that have broadened the ...
Pipeline.
Feb 02, 2006; ... A Hint on GMAC? Ken Thompson, Wachovia Corp.'s chairman, chief executive, and president, cast doubt on the recent speculation that his company is a bidder for a 51% stake in General Motors Acceptance Corp. During a presentation Wednesday at a New York investor ...
In Brief: Security Standards Program.(Brief Article)
Feb 02, 2006; ... Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co., Wells Fargo & Co., U.S. Bancorp, and Bank of New York Co. are developing a uniform set of security standards for their technology providers. The six banking companies plus several accounting firms and the Financial ...
In Brief: PayPal Reducing Fund's Return.(Brief Article)
Feb 02, 2006; ... PayPal Inc. will lower the yield on its variable-rate money market fund March 1. Amanda Pires, a spokeswoman for the payment subsidiary of eBay Inc. of San Jose, said Wednesday that it would cut the yield by 25 basis points to offset the costs of managing the fund. "As it's ...
In Brief: Sterling Stock Drops; Takeover Talk Cited.(Brief Article)
Feb 02, 2006; ... Shares of Sterling Bancorp of New York fell 10% Wednesday, to $20.81, reversing much of their 20% gain Tuesday. Analysts said the fluctuation appeared to be motivated by takeover speculation. On Tuesday, Sterling's trading volume was 10 times higher than its daily ...
In Brief: Earnings, Expenses Increase at BOK.(BOK Financial Corp.)(Brief Article)
Feb 02, 2006; ... BOK Financial Corp. in Tulsa said fourth-quarter earnings rose 3.4% from the same period a year earlier, to $48.2 million. Earnings per share rose 2.8%, to 72 cents, but fell 4 cents short of analysts' estimates as expense growth cut into profits. The $16.2 ...
In Brief: Profits and Loans Climb at Greater Bay.(Brief Article)
Feb 02, 2006; ... Greater Bay Bancorp of East Palo Alto, Calif., said its fourth-quarter earnings rose 8% from the same period a year earlier, to $22.8 million, because of a modest increase in loans. The $7.1 billion-asset Greater Bay said Wednesday that its loan book rose 5.3% from a year ...
In Brief: BlackRock Falls on Report Deal Talks Off.(Brief Article)
Feb 02, 2006; ... BlackRock Inc.'s stock price fell Wednesday after a news report that a potential deal to sell itself to Morgan Stanley had fallen through. CNBC said BlackRock, which is 70% owned by Pittsburgh's PNC Financial Services Group Inc., had ended its talks with Morgan Stanley after ...
In Brief: Bernanke Sworn In; Greenspan Era Ends.(Brief Article)
Feb 02, 2006; ... Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke was sworn in Wednesday morning by Vice Chairman Roger Ferguson Jr. It was the central bank's first change of leadership since 1987. Alan Greenspan's tenure ended Tuesday night. Mr. Bernanke's term as chairman will end Jan. 31, ...
Bank of Montreal to Double Harris Sites.(Harris Bancorp Inc.)
Feb 02, 2006; ... Bank of Montreal plans for Harris Bancorp Inc. to have 350 to 400 branches in five years, twice the total now. "Our goal is to become the leading midwestern bank," chief financial officer Karen Maidment said Wednesday. "We need to grow faster ... than our competitors." ...
Parent: Ryan Beck Returns Solid; Unit Not For Sale.
Feb 02, 2006; ... Pressure is mounting on BankAtlantic Bancorp Inc. to sell its investment banking unit, but executives insist Ryan Beck & Co. Inc. provides attractive returns and remains a good investment. "At the end of the day, if they return for us ... it's a pretty good alternative ...
Synovus Adjusts Operating Structure.(Synovus Financial Corp.)
Feb 03, 2006; ... Synovus Financial Corp. of Columbus, Ga., one of the nation's largest decentralized banking companies, is moving away from that model -- but not in a way consumers would notice. Richard Anthony, its president and chief executive, said in an interview last week that it will ...
Dugan Offers Sharp Critique On Privacy.
Feb 03, 2006; ... WASHINGTON -- Calling the privacy notices banks currently send "nothing more than a costly waste," Comptroller of the Currency John Dugan said regulators are testing new ones with consumers. He also urged Congress to create a single federal standard on a related topic -- data ...
Ben Love's Influence on Generation of Tex. Bankers.(Obituary)
Feb 03, 2006; ... The roster of people who got their start working for Ben Love during his nearly two decades as chairman and chief executive officer of the old Texas Commerce Bancshares reads like a who's who in banking and politics. It includes Florida Gov. Jeb Bush; Eduardo Aguirre, the U.S. ...
Surprises from New Century: A profit surge, a new CEO, and no guidance.(New Century Financial Corp.)
Feb 03, 2006; ... Fears about fourth-quarter pressure on nonprime mortgage sales margins turned out to be overblown in the case of New Century Financial Corp., leading to a surprisingly strong earnings report Thursday. It helped that the real estate investment trust began raising coupons and ...
People.
Feb 03, 2006; ... Big Deal Banter Chief executive Jamie Dimon, who has repeatedly tried to clarify JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s acquisition strategy, took another crack at it this week: "I think we should just do Citibank and get it done with, you know. "That would be the mother of all ...
MBA on Flood Reform: Don't Overdo It.(Mortgage Bankers Association)
Feb 03, 2006; ... WASHINGTON -- An industry representative told Congress it must balance protection of Hurricane Katrina victims against the mortgage market's broader needs as it reforms the National Flood Insurance Program. "It is crucial that Congress act quickly to increase the [flood ...