Personal Finance Blog By MoneyRates - Banking
Declining Profit Margins a New Threat to Bank Rates
July 28, 2010
It's a delicate balance. Sometimes banks want to attract deposits in savings accounts, money market accounts, and CDs. Other times, those accounts can be almost a liability. According to a recent story in US Banker, now is one of the latter times, when some banks may actually shun new deposits. No, that doesn't mean you have [...]
Bank Rates May Get Tangled in Regulatory Reform
June 2, 2010
Both the Senate and the House of Representatives have passed versions of a financial regulation reform bill, but the process of resolving differences in the two versions continues. Meanwhile, American Banker reports that if the Senate version is passed, an estimated 200 regulatory rules and actions will be required to implement the new law. In the [...]
FDIC Warns of Bogus E-Mail
May 5, 2010
At the end of last week, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) issued a consumer alert warning of a bogus e-mail purporting to be from the FDIC. The e-mail offers recipients $50 for participating in a survey, and asks them to click on a link to a web site. The FDIC alert states that the [...]
Bank Earnings: Looking a Gift Horse in the Mouth
April 19, 2010
Despite the pall cast over the stock market by the federal government's charges against Goldman Sachs, the past week has been highlighted by above-expectations earnings reports from JP Morgan Chase and Citigroup. This earning strength has been greeted as a sign that the big banks have really turned things around for the better. However, perhaps [...]
The Latest Import from Asia: Responsible Banking?
February 22, 2010
Last week, China raised its reserve requirement ratio for large banks. The move was noteworthy because it is a tactic designed to slow growth -- something it's hard to imagine U.S. policymakers doing. However, China's action may be an example of how policymakers can lead rather than follow. According to a New York Times story, China's [...]
What Can Brown Do for Bank Rates?
January 25, 2010
When Republican Scott Brown won the special election to fill the Senate seat long held by Edward Kennedy, the initial focus was on how the shifting balance of Congressional power could slow down, dilute, or even doom health care reform. With banking reform another hot topic in Washington, it is also worth considering what this [...]
Dodd's Departure a New Twist for Bank Reform
January 11, 2010
The decision by Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd not to pursue re-election was an unexpected development which puts yet another wrinkle in the path toward new banking legislation. For depositors, it might be a mixed blessing. Late last year, Senator Dodd proposed sweeping and stringent banking legislation. It was quickly apparent that he had over-reached, [...]
Hiccup in Home Prices a Setback for Bank Rates
December 30, 2009
It's not a disaster, but it is a discouraging note if you've been watching and waiting for savings account rates, money market rates, and CD rates to improve. After five straight months of increases, the S&P Case-Shiller home price index was reported yesterday to be flat for the month of October. The S&P Case-Shiller index is [...]
Was Bernanke Man of the Year for Depositors?
December 21, 2009
Time Magazine recently named Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke as its Man of the Year for 2009. It's unlikely that depositors who are fed up with low bank rates would have voted for him. Time Magazine recognized Bernanke for his role in preventing the financial crisis from getting worse than it did. It's a controversial choice. [...]
Banking Update: Rolling Up the TARP
December 14, 2009
Citigroup became the latest bank to pay back the TARP funds lent by the government in the midst of the financial crisis. Citigroup will pay back $20 billion, while the government will sell off the equity stake it obtained in Citigroup as part of the loan package. As things stand now, the government could make [...]
