As anticipated, the Fed raised its benchmark interest yesterday (for only the second time since the 2008 financial crisis) to somewhere between .5 and .75 percent and, perhaps more critically, revealed its expectation for...more
12/15/2016
/ Amazon Marketplace ,
Automotive Loans ,
Consumer Lenders ,
Credit Cards ,
Data Breach ,
Deutsche Bank ,
Exxon Mobil ,
FHFA ,
Financial Institutions ,
Goldman Sachs ,
Interest Rate Adjustments ,
Kraft ,
Mergers ,
Morgan Stanley ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
RMBS ,
Verizon ,
Yahoo!
In the ongoing battle over almost $38 billion in securities at issue in post-crisis-era lawsuits, the big banks are pushing hard for appellate courts to blow up the Firrea extender provision and find that the DOJ waited too...more
12/14/2016
/ Banks ,
Credit Suisse ,
Extender Statutes ,
Financial Institutions ,
FIRREA ,
Interest Rate Adjustments ,
Martin Act ,
Nintendo ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
RMBS ,
Wells Fargo
Streetwise traces Italy’s Banca Monte dei Paschi’s big-time current troubles to a meeting nearly a decade ago and the ill-fated deal reached there that’s led to the downfall of 3 (and probably 4) of the world’s biggest and...more
12/13/2016
/ Bank Accounts ,
Banks ,
Cross-Selling ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
Fraud ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Investment ,
Italy ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Prudential Insurance ,
RICO ,
Startups ,
Wells Fargo ,
White Collar Crimes
The Times went all in on Twinkies this weekend, with a look at how they came to be and how their comeback recently helped private equity execs laugh their way to the bank....more
12/12/2016
/ Banks ,
Blockchain ,
Cross-Selling ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Currency ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
Food Manufacturers ,
France ,
Goldman Sachs ,
IMF ,
Insurance Industry ,
Negligence ,
Oil & Gas ,
OPEC ,
PepsiCo ,
Private Equity ,
Prudential Insurance ,
Twitter ,
Virtual Currency ,
Wells Fargo
A NY state court threw out Ace Decade Holdings’ suit against UBS accusing the Swiss lender of fraud for its $500 million investment loss in a Chinese company. The court found that jurisdictional issues plagued plaintiff’s...more
12/9/2016
/ Acquisitions ,
Administrative Resignation ,
Bail-In Provisions ,
Bonds ,
EU ,
European Central Bank ,
Financial Institutions ,
Fraud ,
Investment ,
LinkedIn ,
Microsoft ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
UBS
With Fitch and DBRS [by most measures, the #3 and #4 rating agencies in a 3-player game] doling out AAA ratings for bonds backed by non-qualified mortgages that Moody’s has dubbed “risky.” Well worth keeping an eye on this...more
12/8/2016
/ AT&T ,
Banks ,
Bonds ,
China ,
Consumer Lenders ,
DBRS ,
EU ,
EURIBOR ,
Financial Institutions ,
FinTech ,
Fitch ,
HSBC ,
JPMorgan Chase ,
LendingClub ,
Moody's ,
Non-GAAP Financial Measures ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Time Warner
Here’s an interesting take on the future of the labor market (especially for an emerging generation that is better with a screen than eye contact)—because robots and AI will be able to take over anything that’s routine,...more
12/7/2016
/ Arbitration ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Bank Accounts ,
Confidential Information ,
Cross-Selling ,
Cybersecurity ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
Insider Trading ,
Securities Violations ,
Wells Fargo
Blackstone is spinning off a new housing maintenance and rental venture in the form of Invitation Homes LP, which could see an IPO as early as January 2017. Invitation Homes is the culmination of a four-year, $10 billion...more
12/6/2016
/ Amazon Marketplace ,
Anti-Money Laundering ,
Banks ,
Bitcoin ,
Citigroup ,
Credit Suisse ,
Digital Currency ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Financial Crisis ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Financial Institutions ,
FinTech ,
Foreclosure ,
Hedge Funds ,
Housing Market ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Securities Violations ,
Tax Fraud ,
Virtual Currency ,
White Collar Crimes
Federal regulators are on the verge of creating a brand new type of banking license specifically for fintech. Called “special purpose national bank charters,” the licenses are intended to enable fintech companies that accept...more
12/5/2016
/ Bank of New York (BNY) Mellon ,
Banks ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Deutsche Bank ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
FinTech ,
Forex ,
Licenses ,
Price-Fixing ,
Royal Bank of Scotland ,
Shareholder Rights
8 years after returning as CEO, Starbucks’ Howard Schultz is again planning to step down, turning over the barista apron to current president and COO Kevin Johnson. Schultz will continue to work on Sbux social issues and the...more
12/2/2016
/ Bonds ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Enron ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
Job Creation ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Retailers ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Starbucks
Even as auto lending continues at near break-neck pace, regulators are expressing concerns about the rise (again) of subprime delinquencies from borrowers. The trend, at a time when the US economy is doing relatively well,...more
12/2/2016
/ Automotive Loans ,
Class Action ,
Consumer Lenders ,
Facebook ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Insider Trading ,
Merrill Lynch ,
Oil & Gas ,
OPEC ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Puerto Rico ,
Securities ,
Settlement ,
Valeant
Bad news for RBS, which is tasked with scrounging up more capital after failing its Bank of England stress test—a bad sign for a British financial system still coping with Brexit fallout....more
11/30/2016
/ Bank of England ,
Blockchain ,
Canada ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
Housing Market ,
Libor ,
Royal Bank of Scotland ,
Samsung ,
Shareholder Activism ,
Snapchat ,
Trading Platforms ,
UK
Loyal Starwood pointers have been waiting anxiously to hear what the hotel brand’s merger with Marriott will mean for their coveted reward system. They’ll have to wait a bit longer, but here are a lot of answers to other...more
11/29/2016
/ Banks ,
China ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Credit Ratings ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Institutions ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Hotels ,
Incentive Compensation ,
Investment ,
Marriott ,
Samsung ,
Takeover Bids ,
Theranos ,
Warner Music Group ,
Wells Fargo
A new trading link dropping next week will give international investors access to more than 800 stocks listed on China’s Shenzhen stock market, the boom/bust venue best known for its “rampant speculation”....more
11/28/2016
/ Acquisitions ,
Arbitration ,
Bank Accounts ,
Banks ,
China ,
Cross-Selling ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
FinTech ,
Foreign Investment ,
Innovative Technology ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Stock Markets ,
Wells Fargo
Big American companies are awfully eager to keep the China market alive. For Disney, that means dropping $1.4 billion on a Hong Kong Disneyland upgrade. For Facebook, it means a CEO who’s picked up Mandarin and a...more
11/23/2016
/ Banks ,
Black Friday ,
China ,
Disney ,
Facebook ,
Fannie Mae ,
Financial Institutions ,
Freddie Mac ,
Index Funds ,
Mobile Apps ,
Retail Market ,
Trade Policy ,
Trade Relations
The Financial Stability Board—that Swiss-based grand collection of central bankers and regulators from the world’s biggest economies—has upped the systemic importance ranking for three of America’s biggest banks, including...more
11/22/2016
/ Ally Financial Inc ,
Amazon Marketplace ,
Bank of America ,
Banks ,
Brokers ,
Citigroup ,
Corporate Taxes ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Institutions ,
FSB ,
Investment Adviser ,
Kickbacks ,
Retirement Plan ,
Tax Cuts ,
Trump Administration ,
Valeant ,
Wells Fargo
The IRS isn’t waiting around for virtual currency to gain wider acceptance. No, it’s more than happy to go after Bitcoin users who have sought to use the virtual currency as a means of evading taxes....more
11/21/2016
/ Acquisitions ,
Anthem Blue Cross ,
Best Buy ,
Bitcoin ,
CIGNA ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Digital Currency ,
Energy Sector ,
Executive Compensation ,
Fannie Mae ,
Financial Institutions ,
Freddie Mac ,
Internet Retailers ,
IRS ,
Microsoft ,
OCC ,
Retailers ,
Royal Bank of Scotland ,
Saudi Arabia ,
Tax Evasion ,
Technology ,
Virtual Currency ,
Wells Fargo
On the Hill yesterday, Fed Chair Yellen acknowledged that the recent election would likely mean changes for the economy, but she said it was “too soon” to predict the nature of that economic impact at this time (though that...more
11/18/2016
/ Automotive Industry ,
Bribery ,
Broker-Dealer ,
China ,
Corruption ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Elon Musk ,
Energy Sector ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Institutions ,
Fraud ,
Goldman Sachs ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Investment Management ,
JPMorgan Chase ,
Kickbacks ,
Layoffs ,
Presidential Elections ,
Retirement Plan ,
Solar Energy ,
Solar Panels ,
SolarCity ,
Technology Sector ,
Tesla ,
Trump Administration ,
Valeant ,
Volkswagen
The saga of Theranos whistleblower Tyler Shultz, grandson of former Secretary of State (and Theranos director) George Shultz, who faced threats, a familial rift, and a boat-load of legal fees as he tried to expose Theranos’...more
11/17/2016
/ Administrative Resignation ,
Banks ,
Bonds ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Lenders ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
Goldman Sachs ,
Online Marketplace Lending ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Theranos ,
Whistleblowers
All those traders excited about a burgeoning US economy ahead may want to keep an eye on the commercial real estate market, which is seeing a rise in defaults and delinquencies as pre-crisis 10-year loans come due....more
11/16/2016
/ Airlines ,
Commercial Real Estate Market ,
Credit Suisse ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
General Electric ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Insurance Industry ,
Moody's ,
Non-GAAP Financial Measures ,
Presidential Elections ,
Rating Agencies ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
RMBS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Transparency ,
Trump Administration ,
Warren Buffett
SEC chief Mary Jo White has announced that she’ll be stepping down in early 2017—an expected move that nevertheless drives home the reality of the big changes ahead for the securities industry (and many others)....more
11/15/2016
/ Amazon Marketplace ,
Apple ,
Bonds ,
Facebook ,
Fannie Mae ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
GAO ,
Google ,
Hedge Funds ,
Housing Market ,
Mortgages ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Stocks ,
Stress Tests ,
Technology Sector ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblowers
The bond market seems to have a pretty good guess of things to come, at least. The bond market lost more than $1 trillion in value last week, and 30-year US bond yields rose the most since January 2009—all in anticipation of...more
11/14/2016
/ AT&T ,
Banks ,
Big Data ,
Bonds ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Reserve ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
Mergers ,
Pensions ,
Presidential Elections ,
Presidential Nominations ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Time Warner ,
Trump Administration ,
Wells Fargo ,
Whistleblowers
Veteran’s Day in the US means Singles Day in China, the world’s biggest shopping day and a major test for Alibaba to keep growing on the day it helped invent....more
11/11/2016
/ Acquisitions ,
Alibaba ,
China ,
Cybersecurity ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Institutions ,
JPMorgan Chase ,
Mergers ,
Merrill Lynch ,
Presidential Elections ,
Presidential Nominations ,
Retirement Plan ,
Sales Commissions ,
Trump Administration ,
Verizon ,
Wells Fargo ,
Yahoo!
So, it turns out that all of the Brexit-style market freefalling was reserved for overnight trading. US markets actually closed up yesterday after modest opening losses....more
11/10/2016
/ Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
EU ,
Extradition ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
Flash Crash ,
Hackers ,
Member State ,
Mortgage Loan Originators ,
Mortgage Servicers ,
Mortgages ,
NYDFS ,
Presidential Nominations ,
Referendums ,
Retirement Plan ,
Spoofing ,
Trump Administration ,
UK ,
UK Brexit ,
Yahoo!
And we thought Brexit was something. Buckle up. It’s going to be a wild market ride...
Whoa....more
11/9/2016
/ Breach of Contract ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
FDIC ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
FIRREA ,
Personal Data ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Pharmacies ,
Presidential Elections ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
RMBS ,
Royal Bank of Scotland ,
SolarCity ,
Technology Sector ,
Tesla ,
Theranos ,
Trump Administration ,
UK Brexit ,
Valeant ,
Walgreens