We had a pretty good inkling this was coming. Yahoo and Verizon are reportedly nearing a new deal, with Y! knocking something close to $300 million off of the sale price to ensure that Verizon will still go through with the...more
2/16/2017
/ Banking Sector ,
Banks ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Consumer Lenders ,
Financial Institutions ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Merger Agreements ,
Mortgages ,
Public Offerings ,
Snapchat ,
Social Media ,
Social Networks ,
Verizon ,
Yahoo!
Unfortunately enough for Deutsche Bank, 2017 isn’t starting off much better than the previous year. The German banking giant has agreed to pay a $425 million fine to NY state authorities (and another $204 million to the UK’s...more
1/31/2017
/ Banking Sector ,
Banks ,
Bonds ,
Capital Requirements ,
Deutsche Bank ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Elon Musk ,
Energy Storage ,
Facebook ,
Federal Reserve ,
Financial Institutions ,
Investors ,
Microsoft ,
Money Laundering ,
Renewable Energy ,
Russia ,
Stress Tests ,
Tesla ,
Trump Administration
Some solid non-search-engine growth helped Alphabet post pretty solid Q4 numbers (with profit missing estimates but revenue surging past them)....more
1/27/2017
/ Alibaba ,
Banks ,
Barclays ,
Charter Communications ,
EU ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Google ,
Importers ,
Imports ,
Mergers ,
Mexico ,
Telecommunications ,
Trade Relations ,
UK ,
UK Brexit ,
US Trade Policies ,
Verizon
The recent US rejection of the TPP will have wide-reaching effects in Asia. Among them is the strong likelihood of 80s-style trade warring between Japan and the US....more
1/26/2017
/ Aircraft ,
Banking Sector ,
Banks ,
Biotechnology ,
Boeing ,
Credit Suisse ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Deutsche Bank ,
Dow Jones ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Markets ,
Mergers ,
Nasdaq ,
RMBS ,
Royal Bank of Scotland ,
Securities ,
Stock Exchange ,
Trade Relations ,
Trans-Pacific Partnership ,
US Trade Policies
The Journal reported yesterday that more than 6,000 Wells Fargo branches were routinely tipped off to inspections by internal risk monitors, a practice that allowed the bank’s sham-account scandal to go undetected for years....more
1/25/2017
/ Activist Investors ,
Alibaba ,
Banks ,
Capital Raising ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Deutsche Bank ,
Fannie Mae ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
Housing Market ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Investment Firms ,
Mortgages ,
Real Estate Market ,
Rental Property ,
RMBS ,
Snapchat ,
Social Media ,
Trust Indenture Act ,
Wells Fargo
On the heels of Deutsche Bank’s $7.2 billion deal, Credit Suisse has finalized the terms of its own MBS-related settlement. The Swiss bank will pay $5.3 billion to resolve claims that it misled investors about the standards...more
1/19/2017
/ Banks ,
Bonds ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Credit Suisse ,
Debt Collection ,
Discrimination ,
Discriminatory Lending Practices ,
FHA Loans ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
Inflation Adjustments ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
JPMorgan Chase ,
Loans ,
Mortgage Lenders ,
Mortgage Servicers ,
Mortgages ,
Race Discrimination ,
RMBS ,
Samsung ,
Securities Violations ,
Student Loans ,
Trump Administration
Deutsche Bank and the DOJ have put the finishing touches on the deal to resolve the investigation into DB’s role in its sale of toxic RMBS. The bank will fork over $7.2 billion in total, including a $3.1 billion civil penalty...more
1/18/2017
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Banks ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Deutsche Bank ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
FinTech ,
Fintech Charter ,
Member State ,
OCC ,
Online Marketplace Lending ,
Qualcomm ,
Referendums ,
Retail Market ,
Retailers ,
RMBS ,
Sears ,
Securities Fraud ,
Technology ,
UK ,
UK Brexit ,
US Bank ,
Wireless Technology
Some early signs of the focus of SoftBank’s “hugely ambitious” $100 billion investment fund are beginning to emerge, and at first blush, it appears a majority of the cash will land in private and public markets rather than...more
1/11/2017
/ Automotive Industry ,
Banks ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Foreign Currency ,
Forex ,
Investment Funds ,
Market Manipulation ,
National Emissions Standards ,
Solar Energy ,
Solar Panels ,
Startups ,
Valeant ,
Volkswagen ,
Wells Fargo ,
White Collar Crimes
The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation—the company that “serves as the back end for much Wall Street trading”—has announced a big step forward in the embrace of blockchain technology to track and report transactions. IBM...more
1/10/2017
/ Banks ,
Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Digital Currency ,
Economic Development ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
HSBC ,
Mortgage Servicers ,
Mortgages ,
OCC ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Virtual Currency ,
Wall Street ,
White Collar Crimes ,
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
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
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
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 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
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
Wells Fargo is well past the rain, the pouring, and even the flooding. So why not possible liability for its RMBS practices? As part of an SEC disclosure, the bank acknowledge that it’s “in discussion” with the RMBS Working...more
11/4/2016
/ Banks ,
Brokers ,
Credit Suisse ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Financial Crisis ,
Financial Institutions ,
Generic Drugs ,
Investment Management ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
RMBS ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Wells Fargo
Merrill Lynch has already staked out the position in response to the DOL’s retirement account fiduciary duty rule that it would no longer offer commission-based IRAs to retirement savers. Yesterday, it effectively doubled...more
11/2/2016
/ Acquisition Agreements ,
Appraisal ,
Banks ,
Broker Commissions ,
Brokers ,
Class Action ,
Dark Pool ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Exchange-Traded Products ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
Goldman Sachs ,
Herbalife ,
Individual Retirement Account (IRA) ,
Inflation Adjustments ,
Merger Agreements ,
Merrill Lynch ,
Mortgage Lenders ,
Mortgages ,
Mutual Funds ,
Nasdaq ,
Nutritional Supplements ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Retirement Plan ,
Settlement ,
Stocks ,
Takeda Pharmaceuticals ,
Trading Platforms ,
Valeant ,
Wells Fargo
Faced with new Department of Labor rules requiring investment advisers to act in the best interest of their retirement account customers, Morgan Stanley’s decided to let its customers keeping paying for retirement advice with...more
10/27/2016
/ AT&T ,
Banks ,
Cable Television Providers ,
China ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Deutsche Bank ,
Driverless Cars ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
FinTech ,
Google ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Innovative Technology ,
Investment Adviser ,
Morgan Stanley ,
NYSE ,
OCC ,
Private Equity ,
Retirement Plan ,
Technology ,
Time Warner Cable ,
Transportation Industry
Italy’s struggling lender Monte Dei Paschi is cutting jobs and closing branches in an effort to revive the world’s oldest bank (and maybe save Siena in the process)....more
10/26/2016
/ Acquisition Agreements ,
AT&T ,
Banks ,
Credit Suisse ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Italy ,
Morgan Stanley ,
RMBS ,
Time Warner Cable ,
Wells Fargo