Results tagged “banks”

Remember when the financial crisis waterboarded the American economy to within an inch of its life, and then taxpayers threw all their money at Wall Street to stop the drowning? That's all behind us now, and those of you reading this in the basement of your parents' tent under the bridge can take comfort in knowing that everything's coming up Goldman. Though CEO Lloyd Blankfein recently urged employees not too buy anything flashy in the wake of record profits, everything else at Goldman is back to normal and no lessons have been learned, just like the end of a Seinfeld episode."Our risk appetite continues to grow year on year, quarter on quarter, as our balance sheet and liquidity continue to grow," crows Goldman president Gary Cohn to the Times. What could go wrong?

The NYPD is calling on the public to help them track down a ring of thieves who used ATMs at two Sovereign Bank branches on Staten Island to rob customers of roughly half a million dollars. Police have released surveillance photos of three suspects who installed "skimmers" on the banks' ATM machines that grabbed data from the magnetic strips on the back of bank cards. They also attached tiny cameras in the lighted signs over the ATMs that videotaped customers' PINs. The suspects were then able to transfer that info onto a blank card and withdraw money from the victims' accounts. The bank has refunded customers, but Deputy Inspector Gregory Antonsen tells the Daily News that New Yorkers should monitor their accounts closely: "This crew is sophisticated. And they are coming up with new ways to steal your identity every day." Anyone ready to snitch can call Crime stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS or submit their tips online via the Crime stoppers Web site. ATM skimming is an ongoing problem for banks and their customers; in 2006 thieves scored $100,000 from 50 Washington Mutual accounts.

The complete details of the government's bank stress tests will be announced (after the markets close) at 5 p.m., but a lot of the news has already leaked out—and has boosted investors' confidence. For instance, apparently Citigroup will need to raise $5 billion, while Bank of America may need another $34 billion. Wells Fargo reportedly needs $13-15 billion, but American Express, Capital One, Bank of New York Mellon, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase and MetLife were deemed okay and don't need to raise capital, according to NY Times sources. CNBC explains the tests "put banks through two scenarios: one that reflected expectations about the current recession and another that envisioned a recession deeper than what analysts predict." Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on the Charlie Rose show last night (see video), "It will help lift this fog of uncertainty over the financial system, and I think the results will be, on balance, reassuring."

A Chinese man is charged with setting up four bogus companies to sell nuclear bomb-making materials to the Iranian military, and using several unnamed NYC banks to conduct the illegal transactions (supposedly without their knowledge). Manhattan DA Robert M. Morgenthau held a press conference today announcing a 118-count indictment of Li Fang Wei, who is not believed to be in the U.S. While acknowledging the charges could result in a relatively light prison sentence for Li, Morgenthau explained that "what we are doing is to make every effort to prosecute the company which is perhaps the largest supplier of weapons of mass destruction to the Iranian government, and also to let people know that the Iranians are deadly serious about acquiring materials for long-range missiles and for atom bombs." The indictment has certainly alarmed Gary Milhollin, director of the Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms Control; he tells the Times, "If exports of this magnitude are routinely going from China to Iran, then it’s clear that the United States has failed in its efforts to curb this kind of proliferation."

President Obama is meeting with the heads of top banks today; according to Reuters, he will "quiz [them] about developments in the economy and their businesses as his administration seeks broader authority to regulate the financial system." However, the Treasury Department faces a battle with getting those policies passed; the NY Times reports, "Even though [Treasury Secretary] Geithner carefully avoided specific details, laying out mostly broad principles for overhauling the system, financial industry groups are identifying issues they plan to pursue and lining up well-connected lobbyists and publicists to help make their cases." Yesterday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed just under the 8,000 mark, at 7,924 points; stock futures suggest the market will open lower, "taking a breather after a week in which equities have surged amid hopes the economy has begun to stabilize," per the Wall Street Journal.

The heads of U.S. banks who have received a combined $135 billion in Troubled Asset Relief Program funds were in the firing line of the House Financial Services Committee. When the executives were somewhat apologetic for the credit collapse—Morgan Stanley's John Mack said, "We are sorry for it. I am especially sorry for what's happened to shareholders [and the American public]. Clearly, as an industry, we have accountability and we're taking responsibility. I'll take responsibility for my firm."—many members of Congress took the Festivus-approach, by airing grievances.

At a Crain's New York forum this morning, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon told the audience that his bank had made $100 billion in loans since getting bailed out: "He immediately added, however, that banks have tightened credit because the recession has chilled demand for new loans. He also said banks are wary because of the huge losses they still face, reminding the audience that J.P. Morgan expects to lose $10 billion next year just from dud credit card loans." Dimon thinks the Fed should regulate all parts of the financial system and also defended bonuses to executives, pointing out many of his execs were given bonuses in JPMorgan stock, whose value has plummeted. Wonder what he thought of Paul Krugman's Bailouts for Bunglers column in the Times yesterday.

What with all the bank mergers and closing, some people are pretty freaked and are cashing out their accounts. Or, as the Post puts it, "they're depositing their cash into Shoebox Bank and Trust." And there's even a picture of a guy with a shoebox full of cash: Richard Cruz did consider putting the money in his mattress but said it was "too last century...No one hides their money under a mattress any more. That's the first place people would look." Beside shoeboxes, safes are being more popular.

After stocks continued to slide yesterday amid worries over the credit crisis, the Treasury Department is thinking about buying stakes in U.S. banks to restore confidence. According to the NY Times, "Treasury officials say the just-passed $700 billion bailout bill gives them the authority to inject cash directly into banks that request it."

Congressional leaders and the White House agree on a bailout plan that will aid troubled financial firms, but now it must be passed by Congress. The Wall Street Journal reports the bill, which would "effectively nationalize an array of mortgages and securities backed by them -- instruments whose deteriorating value has clogged the nation's financial system," was finished late yesterday, and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi says it's "frozen"--as in no more changes.

After years of massive expansion, real estate brokers are bracing themselves for a reversal of bank oversaturation. There are as many retail bank branches in Manhattan as there are Starbucks and Dunkin' Donuts combined. Now Washington Mutual has postponed opening new branches (understandably), and other banks are consolidating their branches. One broker predicts that "we might have empty corners without a lot of takers out there chasing the space." But Mitchell Moss, NYU professor of urban planning, tells the Sun, "You will see a new kind of retail venture taking over the space, but it is difficult to predict what that will be — but it won't be clothing. It will have to be something that addresses a necessity." Gazing into the crystal ball, one can just about see the pawn shop where Chase Bank once pushed out the Second Avenue Deli.

Police Commissioner Ray Kelly is blaming the uptick in robberies this year--265 through September 2, versus last year's 177 during the same period--on banks. A police source tells the Daily News, "The new thing with banks is to be 'friendly' to customers. Branches look like lounges - no glass partitions, no security guards. They are 'friendly,' all right - 'friendly' to thugs who 'withdraw' other people's money." Kelly wants banks to improve their security, a reprise of his request back in 2003 during another bank robbery boom time. The News also runs down the top three targeted banks: Wachovia, Commerce and Sovereign.

Complaining about the proliferation of bank branches in New York City has almost become cliche, but City Planning officials are taking steps to enact zoning restrictions along 125th St. in Manhattan that would limit the number of bank branches on the main drag of Harlem. The idea is that bank branches can have a deadening effect on pedestrian use of a an area because they take up space that could be used for arts, entertainment, or retail purposes.