Home » Archive for October, 2009
Visa (NYSE: V) Posts Q4 Profit On Cost Cuts, Increased Debit Card Transactions
Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) announced Tuesday that it swung a $514 million profit for the fiscal fourth quarter after suffering a $356 million loss in the same period a year ago. Profits were pushed by increased debit card transactions and... More of this article »
Citibank (NYSE: C) Credit Card Interest Rate Hikes Infuriate Consumers
American Banking News recently reported that Citibank has sent letters to untold numbers of customers with good credit that their interest rates will be raised to 29.9%. Customers that received these letters have made their voices... More of this article »
Federal Money Market Guarantee Ends without Consequence
Last month, the Federal Government’s temporary guarantee on money market funds came to an end. Many wondered if the move would cause a flight from money market funds, but a month later, money market accounts are still offering the... More of this article »
American Express (NYSE: AXP) and Discover (NYSE: DFS) Named Best Credit card Issues
American Express (NYSE: AXP) and Discover (NYSE: DFS) were named as the two best credit card companies based on overall consumer satisfaction, according to J.D. Power and Associates 2009 Credit Card Satisfaction Study. The study ranks... More of this article »
Editorial: Will Attempt by U.S. Government and Federal Reserve to Regulate Bankers’ Pay Backfire?
The idea that the U.S. government can make the decision on bankers’ pay better than banking boards and executives is ludicrous at best, and in reality, laughable. Taking into account the unbelievable disaster the government has... More of this article »
Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS), Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) Picketed at Chicago Offices
Stirred up by union activists in Chicago, protesters picketed the offices of Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) and Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC), and then went to the Sheraton hotel, where the annual American Bankers’ Association convention... More of this article »
Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) Economist Says Home Prices Could Plunge 10% in 2010
Several economists at Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) say that home prices in 2010 could plunge by up to 10 percent by mid-2010, and over the next several years will appreciate little, if any. “The risk of renewed home price declines remains... More of this article »
SIPC Offers Little Protection for Investors from Scams
The Securities Investor Protector Corporation is a non-profit government-mandated corporation which protects investors from financial harm in the the investor’s brokerage company fails. As investors in the R. Allen Stanford Ponzi-scheme... More of this article »
Mandatory Arbitration used by Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) and JP Morgan Chase (NYSE: JPM) Ripped-Off Customers
For several years, Credit Cardholder agreements from major banks such as Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) and JP Morgan Chase (NYSE: JPM) required credit card account holders to settle their disputes using non-governmental arbitration firms.... More of this article »
Can GEICO (NYSE: NYSE:BRK.A), Progressive (NYSE: PGR) and Allstate (NYSE: ALL) All Really Save you Hundreds Over the Competition?
GEICO (NYSE: NYSE:BRK.A), Progressive (NYSE: PGR) and Allstate (NYSE: ALL) have all recently run advertising campaigns telling consumers that their automobile insurance products could save consumers over the competition—and they’re... More of this article »
Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) and Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) See Protesters on Monday
The Chicago offices of both Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) and Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) saw picketers and protesters on Monday morning, as reported by the Wall Street Journal. The protest was part of a larger multi-day protest that focused... More of this article »
Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) Experimenting With Charging Customers New Annual Fees
Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) is experimenting with charging customers new annual fees on previously fee-free credit cards for approximately 1% of its customers. Many consumers have reported online that people are receiving fees between... More of this article »
CIT Group (NYSE: CIT), Comerica (NYSE: CMA) and Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) Received Average of $400K in Perks
Some of the largest financial institutions in the United States, including CIT Group (NYSE: CIT), Comerica (NYSE: CMA) and Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) have increased the value of perks being paid to their CEOs while receiving taxpayer... More of this article »
Vanguard Reports Majority of 401(k) Account Balances Have Recovered
Investment giant Vanguard has released a new report that shows what’s really happening with consumer’s 401(k) balances. The new report released by Vanguard takes into consideration the low in March and the recent run-up in stocks... More of this article »
Citibank (NYSE: C) Raising Credit Card Interest Rates to 29.99% for Customers with Good Credit
Citibank (NYSE: C) has sent notices to untold number of credit-worthy customers in the last two weeks that their interest rate will raise to 29.99%. The letters that customers have received says that the rate increase will allow Citibank... More of this article »
Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) Mortgage Rates – November is the Month to Refinance
Wells Fargo & Co’s (NYSE: WFC) refinance rates have been historically low for almost all of 2009. Subjecting the summer months, Wells Fargo’s mortgage rates have been under 5% during all of 2009 to date. During the summer,... More of this article »
Subpoenas Flying Out of House Oversight and Government Reform Committee as Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) Pressured for Information on Countrywide Financial’s VIP Program which Possibly Manipulated Public Policy
The former Countrywide Financial Corp., which is now owned by Bank of America (NYSE:BAC), has its VIP program under increasing scrutiny as the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee has issued subpoenas for the bank to provide... More of this article »
Editorial: Is Obama Administration Attack on Executive Pay Just Politics?
The interference by the government in executive pay at banks has drawn a growing amount of criticism as to whether it’s primarily motivated by politics and garnering favor with the public. All of this is generated by the announcement... More of this article »
Editorial: Personal Responsibility Still Matters in the Post Overdraft Reform World
As legislation works its way through Congress, consumers will likely be no longer hit with several $30 or $40 fees whenever they overdraft their checking accounts, but that doesn’t mean that consumers need not worry about making... More of this article »
Commercial Lender Capmark Financial Group Files For Chapter 11 Protection
Capmark Financial Group, a Pennsylvania-based commercial real-estate lender, announced Sunday that it has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection as it aims to reorganize business under the pressure of mounting debt. The lender... More of this article »
Lending Club’s Collections Practices
Peer-to-Peer lending company, Lending Club, recently outlined its collections practices during an online meeting with several hundreds of its investors. During the interview, the company stated that the majority of its borrowers that... More of this article »
New Federal Incentives Make Short Sales a Reality for Sellers and Buyers
Until recently, sellers have not had much luck in getting banks to approve short sales, or sale agreements that involve the bank agreeing to take an amount short of the loan balance as payment in full for the loan. Fortunately, sellers... More of this article »
United Kingdom Moving to Ban Commissions on All Investment Products
During the summer of 2009, the United Kingdom Financial Services Authority proposed to ban all commissions on investment products. Since then, here’s been a growing movement in Britain to align investment advisers advice with their... More of this article »