Pendulums often swing too far in either direction. It has been shown that complete deregulation or total self-regulation leads to "Big Business Gone Wild." And now the pendulum in regulation over executive…
When Bank of America (BAC) bought Merrill Lynch, one huge retail brokerage team was married with a smaller one. Morgan Stanley (MS) will probably take over the Smith Barney unit of Citigroup…
While the battle between Bank of America (BAC) CEO Ken Lewis and former Merrill Lynch CEO John Thain goes on over who knew about large bonuses and large losses and when they…
Douglas A. McIntyre According to Reuters, Bank of America (BAC) and Merrill Lynch did agree on a bonus package for employees before the merger. There had been questions about the approval. Reuters reports that January…
The federal government has put $150 billion into rescuing AIG (AIG), which was once the most profitable insurance company in the world. With financial relationships linking it to banks and brokerages all…
Bank of America (BAC) is forcing a number of employees in its investment banking operation to defer their bonuses to 2010 and beyond. After all the trouble due to Merrill Lynch paying…
Douglas A. McIntyre The shares in Wells Fargo (WFC) are up 22% to $19.76. The bank’s modest results are not the cause. There is optimism that the federal government will create a "bad bank" to…
Creating a "bad bank" is on the wish list of an extraordinarily large number of regulators and members of Congress. It is a sort of miracle cure to the problems in the…
According to Reuters, the confidence of CEOs at Davos is low as the recession and credit crisis deepen. Reuters reports that Yahoo! (YHOO) slightly beat earnings but posted a weak forecast. Reuters…
Short sellers placed large bets against the stock of tech companies for the period ending on January 15, taking a series of positions to gamble that firms like Microsoft (MSFT) and Cisco…
Companies keep cutting dividends. Some are pressed for cash because of operating losses. Others are being constrained by higher debt service. Banks need to preserve capital. The problem is becoming big enough…
According to Reuters, American Express (AXP) earnings dropped 72% but still beat expectations. Reuters writes that Geithner was confirmed to be Treasury Secretary. Reuters reports that people lost confidence in business globally…
These are some of the top pre-market analyst downgrades and negative calls from Wall Street we have seen early this Monday morning with more than two and a half hours to the…
David Paterson, the governor of New York State, will be attending the World Economic Forum in Davos this week, along with aides and several state troopers, sparking rumors that Switzerland is a…
According to Reuters, The National Association of Business Economics survey found that members believe that the economy has it its worst period in 27 years. Reuters reports that Pfizer (PFE) is close…
