Financial Planning

News

• Short Selling Ban Lifted

  October 9, 2008

  The Securities and Exchange Commission's ban on short selling, which it initiated Sept. 18 as an emergency order to help stabilize the tumultuous market, has finally been lifted.

• Hedge Funds Have Worst Month in a Decade

  October 8, 2008

  September proved especially punishing for hedge fund returns, fueled in part by the ban on short selling.

• States, Localities Face Deeper Crisis

  October 8, 2008

  State and local governments are facing a fiscal crisis that will be far worse than the 2001 recession because sharp declines in income and sales tax collections will lead to more widespread budget cuts in the months ahead.

• Money Fund Worries Prompt Moody's to Downgrade Legg Mason

  October 8, 2008

  Moody's has downgraded Legg Mason's senior debt from A2 to A3, on concerns over poor mutual fund performance and the $2 billion that Legg Mason has pledged to backstop money market funds.

• Bailout Bill Left Lingering Tax Questions

  October 8, 2008

  The financial rescue plan approved by Congress last week included many extensions of expiring tax credits and deductions that helped it win passage in the House, but it also left out some tax issues that will surely be bones of contention for the next Congress.

• IRS Reassures Money Market Funds

  October 8, 2008

  The IRS issued a notice aimed at calming fears that it would act against insurance-dedicated money market funds that take advantage of a new temporary guarantee program.

• PwC Pays $97.5 Million to Settle AIG Suit

  October 8, 2008

  PricewaterhouseCoopers has agreed to pay $97.5 million as a partial settlement of a securities class-action lawsuit over the firm's audits of AIG, the insurance giant recently taken over by the federal government.

• Piper Jaffray to End TOB Program

  October 8, 2008

  Piper Jaffray Cos. said last night it will discontinue its tender-option bond program as result of market dislocations.

• FDIC Eyes Doubling of Average Premium

  October 8, 2008

  With losses expected to top $40 billion over the next five years, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. on Tuesday proposed doubling the fees it charges banks and thrifts for the government's protection.

• If Wachovia Truce Fails, a Bigger Suit from Citi?

  October 8, 2008

  If the truce between Citigroup Inc. and Wells Fargo & Co. that suspended their fight over Wachovia Corp. fails to produce a compromise by this morning, Citi will forge ahead with a lawsuit against Wells.

• Fed's CP Plan Draws Interest of States

  October 8, 2008

  The Federal Reserve announced yesterday that it will buy commercial paper directly from issuers to provide liquidity to the short-term market, prompting officials from Massachusetts and other states to say they may push to participate in the program.

• Fed Cuts Funds Rate 50 BPs to 1.5%

  October 8, 2008

  The Federal Reserve cut its target for the federal funds rate 50 basis points to 1.5% in a move coordinated with other central bank rate cuts.

• Retirement Savings Plunge $2 Trillion

  October 8, 2008

  American workers have lost as much as $2 trillion in their pensions and retirement savings in the past 15 months, witnesses told a hearing of the House Education and Labor Committee.

• Short-Term Market Dries Up

  October 7, 2008

  Liquidity in the short-term market has dried up to the point where there is a lack of banks willing to provide issuers with letters of credit or standby bond purchase facilities.

• Europe Hit By Credit Crisis; Rescue Plans In the Works

  October 7, 2008

  European governments continued this weekend to search for solutions to the credit crisis, reworking rescue plans for a number of financial institutions that provide credit enhancement in the U.S. public finance market.

• 'Speculative Orgy': Bogle's Take on Market Crisis

  October 7, 2008

  John Bogle lay the crux of the financial crisis at the feet of collateralized debt obligations that firms created to eke more yield out of the market.

• Would Split of Wachovia Really Work?

  October 7, 2008

  One of the ideas that has emerged during the legal fight over Wachovia Corp. is one that would divide the company between its would-be suitors, Citigroup Inc. and Wells Fargo & Co.

• B of A Announces Early: Results Off, Dividend Slashed

  October 7, 2008

  Bank of America Corp. moved up its third-quarter earnings announcement by two weeks Monday, releasing results that failed to match analyst estimates and in the same breath slashing its quarterly dividend in half.

• Fed to Start Paying Interest on Reserves

  October 7, 2008

  With a credit crunch gripping the industry, bankers looking to stash money in a safe place have been shoveling funds into the Federal Reserve, where excess reserving reached an average of $68.8 billion between Sept. 11 and Sept. 24.

• Housing Agencies Forced to Curtail Lending

  October 7, 2008

  Frozen out of the capital markets in recent weeks, state and local housing finance agencies are being forced to curtail lending to low- and moderate-income homebuyers at the worst possible time for the broader economy.

• SEC to Rewrite Money Fund Rule 2a-7

  October 7, 2008

  In the wake of the ongoing credit crisis and illiquid money market, much of it due to the failure of a single money market mutual fund, the Securities and Exchange Commission plans to overhaul Rule 2a-7.

• Premiums to Rise as FDIC Adds Risks, Faces Losses

  October 6, 2008

  When the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. sets 2009 premium rates on Tuesday, it is expected to broaden the range of prices it charges healthy banks.

• Lehman Creditors Committee Wants Investigation

  October 6, 2008

  The creditors committee asked for court approval authorizing and directing discovery from JPMorgan Chase.

• The Hartford Gets $2.5 Billion Capital Infusion from Allianz, Changes CIO

  October 6, 2008

  Allianz invests $2.5 billion in The Hartford, which expects a third quarter loss of $2.2 billion.

• Citi Wins Injunction, Giving Deal for Wachovia New Hope

  October 6, 2008

  Citigroup Inc. won a court injunction Saturday night upholding the exclusivity agreement it had signed with Wachovia Corp. on Sept. 29 when the two giants agreed to merge.

• Rescue Bill Passes, with $3B in New Debt

  October 6, 2008

  The second time was the charm for House members Friday, as they reversed Monday's defeat of the $700 billion financial rescue package, which included more than $3 billion in new bond authorizations, and approved it by a vote of 263 to 171.

• With Bailout Approved, What's Next?

  October 6, 2008

  After a grueling two weeks of debate and a near breakdown in the political system, a bill to help stabilize the financial markets was enacted Friday, but the hardest work is just beginning.

• Fidelity Goes After Independent Advisors

  October 6, 2008

  Fidelity Investments' institutional wealth management arm is ratcheting up its pursuit of investment advisors and wealth managers who want to run their own shops.

• Survey: Most Consumers Tightening Their Budgets

  October 6, 2008

  Most Americans have started to reduce spending, according to a survey TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. of Omaha released last week.

• AIG Advisor Group to Be Put Up for Sale

  October 3, 2008

  The American International Group (AIG) Advisor Group, and each of the three independent broker-dealers within it, will be put up for sale.

• House Passes Bailout Bill

  October 3, 2008

  The House reversed Monday's rejection of a bill to stabilize the financial markets approving the measure on Friday with a vote of 263 to 171.

• Citi Challenges Wells-Wachovia Deal, Says It Breaches Exclusivity Pact

  October 3, 2008

  Citi today issued the following statement: Wachovia's agreement to a transaction with Wells Fargo is in clear breach of an exclusivity agreement between Citi and Wachovia.

• Employers Cut 159,000 Jobs, Most in More Than 5 Years

• High-Net-Worth Investor Confidence Hits Low

  October 3, 2008

  Confidence among affluent investors fell to its lowest mark in September since Spectrem Group's monthly survey was begun in February 2004.

• Retirement Assets Fall to $17.1T in 1Q08

  October 3, 2008

  Total retirement assets in the U.S. fell 5.2% during the first quarter of 2008, from $18.0 trillion to $17.1 trillion, according to the Investment Company Institute.

• Wrinkles to Iron Out, Holes to Patch in Bailout Package

  October 3, 2008

  As the House prepares to vote again today on the $700 billion bailout bill, it's becoming clear that many details are unsettled.

• Bair: How to Get More Bang for Bailout Buck

  October 3, 2008

  Of all the provisions in the bill designed to stabilize the financial markets, one of its most potent is not getting enough attention, according to FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair.

• Financial Bailout Plan Would Help with Tax Losses

  October 3, 2008

  The Treasury's financial rescue plan includes a tax change that would allow banks to treat Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac preferred stock as ordinary losses.

• Tax-Exempts Continue to Rebound Gradually as Outflows Slow

  October 3, 2008

  Tax-exempt money market funds continue to show signs of gradual improvement this week. The attractive high rates compared to taxable money market funds are enticing yield-starved investors looking for buying opportunities.

• Massachusetts Pinched

  October 3, 2008

  Delayed progress of the federal government's market bailout continues to restrict state and local governments' abilities to raise money, Massachusetts Treasurer Timothy Cahill said yesterday.

• Discount Window Borrowing Hits Another Record

  October 3, 2008

  For the third consecutive week, lending through the Federal Reserve Board's discount window continued to soar, hitting a new record on Wednesday when total borrowing reached $409.5 billion.

• Is Another Insurer Set for Bankruptcy?

  October 2, 2008

  Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, in pressing for passage of a $700 billion financial system rescue plan, said that a "major" insurance company was about to go bankrupt if financial markets weren't calmed.

• Senate Leaders Agree on AMT Patch and Tax Extenders

  October 2, 2008

  Senate leaders in both parties have agreed on patching the alternative minimum tax for another year, passing a set of clean energy tax incentives and extending several expiring tax cuts for businesses and families.

• Fitch Increases Fund of Hedge Fund Scrutiny

  October 2, 2008

  In response to scrutiny over its ratings of instruments tied to subprime mortgages, Fitch Ratings has increased its own scrutiny over fund of hedge fund managers.

• Thain Sticking with BofA

  October 2, 2008

  Brian Moynihan will continue as president of GCIB at BofA until the merger, and will then become president of private equity and global operations.

• Europe Eyes More Options For Bailout Plan

  October 2, 2008

  France is working on a €300 billion ($417 billion) bailout fund to rescue European banks caught up in the credit crunch, according to press reports.

• Bailout Bill's FDIC Hike Temporary—for Now

  October 2, 2008

  Though a package of changes pushed by policymakers to stabilize the housing market is billed as a sweeping and systemic way to solve the crisis, it includes several ad hoc provisions that will need to be revisited within two years.

• Fannie and Freddie Loan Mods Well Up Since Gov't Takeover

  October 2, 2008

  Since being placed in conservatorship, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have greatly ramped up their loan modification efforts, observers said.

• NYSE: Shorting Ban Likely to Be Extended, Uptick Rule May Return

  October 1, 2008

  NYSE Euronext executives on Wednesday afternoon predicted that the Securities and Exchange Commission will temporarily extend its short selling ban Thursday and provide a clearer idea of its long-term plans to address short sale violations.

• Senate Passes Bailout Bill

  October 1, 2008

  The Senate approved a bill 74 to 25 late Wednesday that is designed to stabilize the financial markets.