Montgomery Bank & Trust, a long time presence in Ailey, Georgia, was closed today by the Georgia Department of Banking and Finance. Montgomery Bank and Trust, which had been in business since 1926, became insolvent after a large amount of borrowers defaulted on their loans. The FDIC was appointed as receiver and sold the failed […]
Barclays Libor Scandal Expands – Why British Taxpayers Will Pay In The End
July 4, 2012 By Leave a Comment
The Barclays Libor scandal continues to escalate after revelations that senior officials at the Bank of England pressured Barclays to artificially lower the Libor rate. Documents released by Barclays suggest that U.K. treasury officials pressured Barclays to lower the Libor rate. This latest development threatens to turn the Libor rate fixing scandal into a showdown […]
Large Banks Simply Can’t Be Trusted – The Cultural Mindset Of Barclays and JP Morgan Management
July 3, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Continuing scandals in the banking industry are making it difficult to avoid the conclusion that the entire crony capitalism structure of banking has become endemically corrupt. Even as the too big to fail banks vehemently lobby against new regulations under the Dodd-Frank Act, recent scandals at Barclays Plc and JP Morgan make it clear that […]
Ridiculous Divergence Between Bank CEO Pay And Shareholder Returns
June 30, 2012 By Leave a Comment
The wide divergence between bank CEO compensation and shareholder returns is an embarrassment to the capitalist notion of linkage between performance and pay. Shareholders of banking stocks have seen the value of their investments pulverized over the past four years as the banking industry struggles to recover from the lending excesses of previous years. Shareholders […]
FDIC Issues 53 Enforcement Actions In May
June 29, 2012 By 1 Comment
The FDIC announced today a total of 53 enforcement actions for May 2012. In the previous month, the FDIC had issued 56 enforcements actions. Enforcements actions issued in May included 9 consent orders, 10 civil money penalties, 8 section 19 orders, 13 orders terminating previous consent and cease and desist orders, 2 orders terminating prompt […]
Credit Ratings of 15 Global Banks Cut In Largest Downgrades Since 2007
June 22, 2012 By Leave a Comment
In the most sweeping credit downgrades since 2007, Moody’s Investor Service lowered the credit ratings of fifteen global banks, including the five largest banks in the United States. The scope of the credit downgrades left many wondering if we are entering a new phase of the global financial meltdown that started in 2008. Despite trillions […]
Three Banks Fail In Tennessee, Georgia and Florida – Total 2012 Bank Failures At 31
June 16, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Regulators closed three banks in three different states, as loan losses continue to plague the banking industry. Efforts by small banks to raise additional capital have become increasing difficult due to low loan demand, a slowing economy and investor antipathy towards banking stocks. The latest three banking failures in Tennessee, Georgia and Florida bring total […]
One Out Of Every Ten Banks Is A “Problem Bank” – FDIC Issues 56 Enforcement Actions In April 2012
May 25, 2012 By Leave a Comment
The FDIC announced in a press release that 56 enforcement actions were taken against banks and individuals during April 2012. In the previous month, the FDIC had issued 72 enforcement actions. The FDIC enforcement actions issued in April included 14 civil money penalties, 1 prompt corrective action, 13 consent orders, 19 orders terminating previous consent […]
Banks Amass $211 Trillion In Derivatives, JP Morgan Loses $2 Billion And Volcher Rule Debates Continue
May 11, 2012 By 1 Comment
The goal of the Volcker Rule, which became law under the Dodd-Frank Act was to restrict speculative trading activity in risky derivatives by the Too Big To Fail Banks. The ban on proprietary bank trading was proposed by former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker who believed that one of the primary causes of the 2008 […]
Dallas Fed Says “Too Big To Fail Banks” Should Be Broken Up – Future “Severe Crises” Possible
May 3, 2012 By Leave a Comment
The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas joined the growing chorus of critics who maintain that the Dodd-Frank Act will not prevent future taxpayer funded bank bailouts. The Dallas Fed said taxpayers are still at risk for the cost of large banks failures and that any future bailouts should result in severe consequences for both bank […]