Islamic Banking Thrives As Wall Street Falters [ANALYSIS] ·
Islamic finance, which bans interest and trading in debt according to sharia law, has held steady despite a painful global credit crisis, spurring U.S. Treasury officials to examine its features for regulatory guidance. (Washington Post)
October 31, 2008
U.S. Treasury
Treasury Halts Negotiations With Detroit Automakers ·
The U.S. Treasury is reportedly no longer negotiating with Detroit automakers about a possible capital infusion via its $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program, complicating prospects for a tie-up between struggling General Motors and Chrysler. (Detroit Free Press)
E. Greenberg: Insurers Don’t Need Subsidies [OPINION] ·
Evan Greenberg, CEO of ACE Limited and chairman of the American Insurance Association, protests that U.S. insurers should not have to partake in the U.S. Treasury's Capital Purchase Program because they have yet to show they pose a systemic risk to the financial system. (WSJ)
Banks Owe Executives $40B In Pay, Pensions ·
Top Wall Street banks scheduled to receive $125 billion in government capital injections reportedly owe their executives more than $40 billion in compensation and pension packages year to date, complicating U.S. Treasury stipulations that the banks strictly use capital infusions to boost lending. (WSJ)
ABA Requests Deadline Extension For Capital Plan ·
The American Bankers Association sent a letter to U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson requesting a deadline extension to participate in its recapitalization plan. The lobby took issue with the program's dividend restrictions and expressed concern it will stigmatize healthy banks. (American Banker)
Treasury Funds To Pay Bank Dividends [ANALYSIS] ·
U.S. banks scheduled to receive $163 billion as part of the U.S. Treasury's recapitalization plan are on pace to use roughly 52% of that sum for dividend payouts, despite earlier insistence from U.S. lawmakers the banks should strictly use the funds to boost lending. (Washington Post)
Lucas: “Bean Accounting” For Federal Bailouts [OPINION] ·
Economist Deborah Lucas argues that the U.S. government holds itself to less stringent accounting standards than it imposes on the private sector, cautioning that its methods could distort the value of securities it buys from troubled financial institutions. (Kellogg Insight)
Cuomo Seeks Information About Bank Bonuses ·
New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo sent letters Wednesday to the top nine banks benefiting from the U.S. Treasury's recapitalization program, requesting "detailed accounting" about bonuses and compensation for their top management. (WSJ)
Treasury, Markets Brace For Insurance Earnings ·
Analysts expect Hartford Financial, Prudential Financial and MetLife to report steep third-quarter losses late Wednesday, increasing pressure on the U.S. Treasury to expand its $700 billion bailout program to include the insurance sector. (CNNMoney)
Treasury Shuns Smaller Lenders [ANALYSIS] ·
Analysts observe that the U.S. Treasury's $160 billion capital handout helps banks that need it least, making them stronger at the expense of their smaller rivals. (Fortune)
We Can Keep People in Their Homes [OPINION] ·
Andrew Caplin, Thomas Cooley, Noel Cunningham and Mitchell Engler argue for an alternative allocation of the U.S. Treasury's $700 billion bailout funding: structure shared appreciation mortgages, or SAMs, to write down portions of mortgage debt on the condition U.S. homeowners share future appreciation gains with the U.S. taxpayer. (WSJ)
Treasury Considers TARP Expansion For Non-Public Banks ·
U.S. Treasury officials are reportedly discussing plans to expand the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program to include non-publicly traded banks, which have expressed fears in recent days that the program encourages consolidation of the banking sector at their expense. (WSJ)
Travelers CEO Shuns Treasury Rescue Money ·
Travelers Chairman and CEO Jay Fishman sent a letter to U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson insisiting his property and casualty insurer does not require federal assistance from the $700 billion bailout program. Fishman said the government should preserve the funds for "more acute problems." (AP)
Congress Asks Banks To Justify $108B In Pay, Bonuses ·
The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform sent a letter Tuesday to nine top Wall Street banks demanding justification for the estimated $108 billion in employee compensation and bonuses they have doled out since the start of 2008. (Bloomberg)
Treasury Official Says America “Open” To Gulf Investors ·
Deputy U.S. Treasury Secretary Robert Kimmitt told business leaders at the Dubai International Financial Center on Tuesday that the U.S. economy remains "open to investment" by Middle East sovereign wealth funds and other wealthy investors. (AP)
