Free Republic

Free Beacon: Wasserman hails DNC's $8 million partnership with SEIU bankBy: Devonia Smith September 21, 2012 Friday, The Free Beacon, reported the Democratic National Committee, (DNC) is in hock to the tune of $8 million to "Amalgamated Bank, often described as “America’s Labor Bank," whose majority ownership is Service Employees International Union (SEIU). According to the Beacon, Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D), "hailed" DNC's banking move because of a “fiduciary responsibility to those who invest in our party.” **SNIP** Not only will the Democrats owe the union for their support; they will now owe real money. Some think thinks this kind...

On Thursday, members of the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis took a tour of the Bakken area. The trips was planned so that Bank President Narayana Kocherlakota and his staff could gather more information on what is currently happening in the region from an economic standpoint. “Obviously, what’s happening here in the Bakken —we took a tour today between Minot and Williston—is quite special,” said Kocherlakota in meeting with the press after the tour. “Just the level of economic vitality is quite different her relative to anywhere else.” With all the struggles in the national economy, western North Dakota is...

Families of victims of a deadly 1983 bombing of U.S. Marines in Lebanon filed a lawsuit on Wednesday seeking to hold Standard Chartered Bank and its New York branch accountable. They claim in the lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Manhattan that the bank conspired with Iran and its agents to hide Iran's assets from them. They're seeking to trace assets as they try to enforce a $2.6 billion judgment against the Islamic Republic of Iran. A federal court in Washington, D.C., issued the award in 2007 after Iran failed to contest claims it was involved in the bombing, which...

Democratic National Committee Moves Its Money to Amalgamated BankBy Amalgamated Bank Published: Friday, Aug. 10, 2012 - 2:35 pm WASHINGTON, Aug. 10, 2012 -- /PRNewswire/ -- The Democratic National Committee (DNC) announced today that it has recently moved its primary banking relationship to Amalgamated Bank, America's Labor Bank. The DNC will use Amalgamated Bank's cash management services to handle its day-to-day banking needs. **SNIP** In announcing the new alliance with Amalgamated, DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz said, "We are proud to join forces with Amalgamated Bank, an organization with a 90-year legacy of reflecting the values of our nation's middle...

It was a cheque, made out in my name, for $95,093.35 and it came in a junk-mail letter from a get-rich-quick company. It was worthless, meant only as a financial tease, a lip-licking come-on. “This is how much money you could soon be making.” What it was never meant for was deposit. But that’s exactly what made the thought of depositing it so irresistibly funny. What could possibly be funnier than depositing a perfectly ridiculous, obviously false, fake cheque? (Did I mention it had “non-negotiable” clearly written on it?) So, as a joke, I deposited the fake cheque into my...

Solyndra’s CEO labeled President Barack Obama’s administration “The Bank of Washington.” Chris Gronet offered the description in an internal email one year before the company collapsed in 2010, costing taxpayers roughly $500 million. “The Bank of Washington continues to help us!” he wrote in the October 2009 e-mail, which described several government programs and incentives. The email bolsters GOP claims that Obama’s support of green-tech companies amounted to “crony capitalism.” Several White House officials had close ties to green-tech companies, and many green-tech executives have donated to Obama’s political campaigns.

The plan works in a fairly simple manner: In the UK`s case, the BofE is lending short-term government bills to banks, which use the securities as collateral to borrow money from the central bank at a rock-bottom rate - about 0.25% - and then make loans. Banks can borrow up to 5% of the value of their existing loan books, and the loans from the BofE are four years in duration. The program is similar to something the Fed tried, with considerable success, during the financial crisis that exploded in 2008. The Fed is meeting Tuesday and Wednesday and will...

As we watch the battle for the Presidency get thrown into the gutter by a President unable to lead the Nation out of its disastrous stagnation, no serious action from Washington will be applied to the national debt, the deficit, or the international banking system heading for a major crash.For well over one generation, America’s and the world’s middle class has been primed and pumped by financial institutions to borrow. The majority was persuaded to incur debt because debt was good. Debt fed the system and placed you in a home. Debt filled that home with appliances and furniture...

Italian prosecutors have now detained the former head of the Vatican’s bank after searching his home and former office for suspected criminal behavior. Catholics and followers of the Holy See will be disappointed to learn that the Vatican’s bank appears to be embroiled in yet another financial scandal. After a number of very embarrassing episodes in recent years, the Pope pledged to comply with international standards on illicit finance and clean up the bank’s image. The European Union has an important role to play in helping the Vatican mitigate risk and come into full compliance; the Financial Action Task Force...

I don't often put stories in "breaking." I post vanities even less often. Hardly anything surprises me any longer, but I find this absolutely astounding. If you follow the financial threads or the situation in Europe, you really need to read this. Actually anyone with a bank account needs to read this. I'm going to ask the mods to leave this here, unless they really feel I'm all wet here. I don't, however, believe I am. Follow me here. BNI (Bank Network Investments) is Italy's oldest and forth largest bank. In other words, it's a biggie. Anyway, the bank went...

Time Bomb? Banks Pressured to Buy Government Debt CNBC, NETNET, NET NET, EUROPE DEBT, GREEK DEBT, EUROPEAN DEBT CRISIS, ECB, EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK Posted By: Jeff Cox | CNBC.com Senior Writer CNBC.com | 31 May 2012 | 02:42 PM ET US and European regulators are essentially forcing banks to buy up their own government's debt—a move that could end up making the debt crisis even worse, a Citigroup analysis says. Regulators are allowing banks to escape counting their country's debt against capital requirements and loosening other rules to create a steady market for government bonds, the study says. While that...

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Your account information will now be accessible to call center workers in the Philippines. Bank of America, which last fall announced plans to lay off 30,000 workers, is about to go on a hiring spree—overseas.America's second-largest bank is relocating its business-support operations to the Philippines, according to a high-ranking Filipino government official recently quoted in the Filipino press. The move, which includes a portion of the bank's customer service unit, comes less than three years after Bank of America received a $45 billion federal bailout.Roman Romulo, deputy majority leader of the Philippine House of Representatives, bragged to the Manila Standard...

Ettore Gotti Tedeschi, former president of the Vatican Bank. Vatican City, May 25, 2012 / 10:17 am (CNA/EWTN News).- The President of the Vatican Bank, Ettore Gotti Tedeschi, has been fired from his post following a vote of no-confidence by the bank's supervisory board. “Over time this area had generated increasing worries among the members of the board and, despite repeated efforts to communicate these concerns to Professor Gotti Tedeschi, President of the Works of Religion, the situation deteriorated further,” read a communiqué issued by the Vatican May 25. “Following discussion of the issues, the board members voted unanimously in...

Trading in the securities of Spanish lender Bankia has been suspended "due to circumstances that may affect the normal share trading," stock market regulator CNMV said on Friday. Bankia will ask the state for more than 15 billion euros ($19 billion) to bail it out when its new management team presents a restructuring plan on Friday, a financial sector source said late on Thursday.

Out of nowehere, JPM announced 40 minutes ago that it would hold an unscheduled 5pm call to coincide with the release of its 10-Q. Rumors were swirling as to why. The reason is as follows: JPMORGAN SAYS CIO UNIT HAS SIGNIFICANT MARK-TO-MARKET LOSSES - "Fortress balance sheet" at least until Bruno Iskil gets done with it. JPMORGAN SAYS LOSSES ARE IN SYNTHETIC CREDIT PORTFOLIO - but, but, net is NEVER, EVER Gross. JPM WOULD NEED $971M ADDED COLLATERAL IF RATINGS CUT ONE-NOTCH JPM WOULD NEED $1.7B ADDED COLLATERAL IF RATINGS CUT 2 NOTCHES - how about three notches? JPMORGAN: MAY...

Two recent pieces of news drive home the importance of making sure that your bank respects your Second Amendment rights. Earlier this month, McMillan Group International, LLC announced that Bank Of America had severed ties with their company specifically because, in the years since they'd opened their accounts, McMillan had transitioned into a firearms manufacturing role. From a statement released by McMillan on April 19: McMillan Fiberglass Stocks, McMillan Firearms Manufacturing, McMillan Group International have been collectively banking with Bank of America for 12 years. Today Mr. Ray Fox, Senior Vice President, Market Manager, Business Banking, Global Commercial Banking came...

NEW YORK — Bank of America says it has begun a pilot program offering some of its mortgage customers who are facing foreclosure a chance to stay in their homes by becoming renters instead of owners. The "Mortgage to Lease" program, which was launched this week, will be available to fewer than 1,000 BofA customers selected by the bank in test markets in Arizona, Nevada and New York. Participants will transfer their home's title to the bank, which will then forgive the outstanding mortgage debt. In exchange, they will be able to lease their home for up to three years...

"That's crazy," the person says. "I can't believe they [Chase officials] did that." Almonte called for the bank to halt the debt sale, but was warned by Lazinbat that "she had better go along with the plan to sell the misrepresented asset," she later wrote in her employment lawsuit. Almonte says she refused Lazinbat's order and escalated her concerns to his boss, Helaire. Chase fired her on Nov. 30, 2009. Carole McGinn was not a party to discussions about the debt sale but confirms the thrust of Almonte's claims. "I know she [Almonte] was looking into things that they didn't...

Citigroup was one of four large US banks that flunked stress tests aimed at seeing how they would hold up in a new economic crisis, Federal Reserve data showed Tuesday. Three others -- Ally, Suntrust and MetLife -- also failed the tests, while 15 other large bank holding companies passed the exercise, the Fed said. As a group, though, the 19 came through strongly, said the Fed, thanks to pressure for them to boost capital over the past three years as the financial sector digs its way out of the deep 2008-2009 recession. "In fact, despite the significant projected capital...