Senate Begins Debate on Finance Bill About Wall Street Overhaul

The much-awaited debate on the finance bill, which proposes a sweeping regulatory overhaul of Wall Street, has begun after being voted down by the Republican Party, which strongly opposed certain provisions of the bill.

The two parties reached a compromise after Republican leader in the Senate, Mitch McConnell, agreed to begin the debate. Republicans will, however, continue to ratchet up pressure on Democrats and try their best to incorporate as many GOP amendments in the bill as they can. The Democrats have agreed to rewrite certain parts of the bill but they will proceed cautiously as Republicans have the power to filibuster amendments as well as the final vote on the bill. [Read more…]

FDIC Chairwoman Underlines the Importance of Banking Values

The chairwoman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC), Sheila Blair recently talked about the importance of banking values to a gathering in the Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics of the University of Kansas. She said that the U.S. economy can prosper and avoid setbacks only if better lending standards are adopted by the banks. She also talked about the need for greater transparency in markets in order to keep recession at bay. [Read more…]

FDIC Proposes Higher Fees for Larger and Riskier Banks

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation has come up with a new proposal for calculating its fees. According to the proposal, banks that are bigger and riskier will have to pay more for insurance of their deposits so that they are discouraged from indulging in risky behavior. [Read more…]

FDIC’s List of Problematic Banks Grows Should You Be Worried?

The ‘Problem List’ of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation comprises of all banks that are facing serious financial troubles. Factors that are considered in determining if a bank is vulnerable include assets, income, liquidity, sensitivity to market conditions, and the management of the bank. The number of banks in the list stood at 702 at the end of 2009 and it has been predicted that this year will be even worse. [Read more…]

Basic Guide to a Certificate of Deposit

A certificate of deposit is a low risk investment and gives higher returns than saving accounts. It operates by taking a certain amount as investment for a fixed period that can be anything from one month to even more than five years. CDs are issued by banks and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) insures them up to $250,000, which means they come with a guarantee from the U.S. government. [Read more…]

Investment Alternatives to Mutual Funds

Those days when investors could blindly stack their cash in mutual funds are behind us. The returns from mutual fund investments have gone down and various other investment options have emerged that look much better. Many retail investors seem to have ignored this fact and they are still not moving their cash from mutual funds to other areas. [Read more…]

Bernanke Supports Current Decentralized Federal Reserve System of Monitoring Financial Institutions

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke has supported the current decentralized structure of the central bank with 12 regional banks. He said that a central agency monitoring the activity of the larger financial institutions in the country alone is not sufficient. A decentralized network of oversight and monitoring is important to lend support to the smaller banks spread across the country. [Read more…]

Number of Failed Banks Reaches 37 for 2010

Regulators have shut down seven more banks as the effect of bad loans on the financial industry continues. This has taken the total number of collapsed banks to 37 this year. [Read more…]

TARP Fraud Involving Bank President Uncovered

An ex- president of a private New York based bank has achieved the dubious distinction of being the first person to be charged with misappropriation of TARP funds. Charles Antonucci, president of Park Avenue Bank between June 2004 and October 2009, was arrested earlier this week, accused of stealing US Government funds. [Read more…]

700 Banks Still Can’t Give Out Loans

The GDP numbers may show that the economy is out of recession and the worst of the crisis is behind us, but most of the banks in the country are not out of trouble yet.

According to the latest report on the health of the banking system from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, or FDIC, more than half of the banks in the country are not being able to give out any new loans. The problem is that bad loans on the books of these banks are constantly rising. With their interest income drying up, they don’t have any money to lend to new customers and are just waiting anxiously for things to improve. [Read more…]

FDIC Closes Four More Banks

Four more banks had to bite to dust, as regulators shut them down in a recent move. These banks in Florida, Illinois, Utah and Maryland were reeling under the pressure of toxic assets that they had accumulated over the past couple of years.

The number of banks shut down this year has now gone up to 26 and it does not seem like this may be the final number for the quarter yet. With these closures, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) has come under more pressure to keep a stronger hold over the situation and dispose off the piling toxic assets. [Read more…]