America's largest consumer bank, Bank of America Corp. has announced a program that eliminates the collection of borrower, lender, and third-party fees. 'No Fee Mortgage PLUS' thus accounts for total elimination of the closing costs. The unique product helps cut down on private mortgage insurance, a premium paid by borrowers whose down payment is less than 20%.
However, the program would not be available to sub prime customers, who pay higher interest rates because of poor credit rating. Other national banks do offer various home loan plans that waive some conventional fees, but this is the first attempt wherein closing costs have been eliminated from the mortgage.
The borrowers with the Charlotte-based BoA now do not have to shell out those extra few thousand dollars as closing fees at the time of buying their dream homes.
The Clearing House to Create Single Industry Forum
The member banks of BITS Payments Strategy Steering Committee (PSSC) have stirred their payments proposals to the Clearing House's Strategic forum crafting a distinct bank-driven core for concerns regarding payments.
Having one organization for the financial services industry will serve as the ultimate forum for discussing new payments ideas and initiatives. The Strategic Payments Forum will primarily focus on Mobile Payments, remittance standards for business-to-business payments, fraud and risk in the payments system and the migration of check to electronic payments.
In addition to 12 current owner banks of the Clearing House Compass Bank, the members of the BITS PSSC that are joining the Strategic Payments Forum include SunTrust, Synovus, Whitney Bank and the Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA).
BancTrust Suffers Decline in Net Income in First Quarter of 2007
While BancTrust Financial Group, Inc. had net income of $3.727 million in the first quarter of 2006, it earned net income of only $2.451 million for the first quarter of 2007.
The decline in income is attributed to a reduction in the net interest margin and a considerable decrease in the total of loans generated in Florida. However, the company is expected to make a meaningful improvement as the year progresses.
BancTrust has benefited from acquisition of new accounts following customer disruptions resulting from recent bank mergers. The first quarter of this year, however, saw the group's non-performing resources to have remained relatively stable.
Ten offices in the Northwest Florida and 21 offices throughout the southern half of Alabama have made available the banking services offered by BancTrust. Apart from banking services, it also provides trust, investment, insurance, brokerage and financial planning services through its affiliates BancTrust Company and BancTrust Financial Services.
Citigroup Inc. to buy Bisys Inc.
Citigroup Inc. has consented to procure Bisys Group Inc. for $1.45 billion. By buying the company, Citigroup will extend its services toward private equity firms and hedge funds.
Bisys' fund services and alternative investment services units would be kept by Citigroup. These service units would be enveloped into the No.1 U.S. bank's global transaction services unit that accommodates securities, processes stock and bond trades and offers cash management services. The retirement and insurance company units of Bisys are planned to be sold off by Citigroup at around $645 million to J.C. Flowers & Co., a private equity firm.
At the deal's closure, Citigroup has declared to pay the shareholders $11.85 per share. An extra 15 cent per share dividend has also been assured. Sources confirm that the company's last year's scam clearings and hunt for a purchaser have resulted in a drop of the shares of Bisys by 25 per cent.
ABN Amro on the Horns of Dilemma
An Amsterdam court ordered ABN Amro to put the sale of its Chicago-based unit LaSalle Bank on hold. This deal has been put on stay till the shareholders endorse (ratify) it. Counter viewing the ruling, ABN Amro stated that LaSalle alone does not comprise one third of the ABN Amro's fortune and so shareholders' endorsement is not at all applicable here.
Earlier, The Bank of America had agreed to buy LaSalle for $21 billion. Barclays are known to have bid for the LaSalle unit at $89.90 billion. Supporting the agreement, ABN Amro agreed to the sale to be finalized. However, the Royal Bank of Scotland bid at $98.7 billion and wanted the unit to remain a part of the bid. Not noticing much interest from the Barclays, ABN Amro declared the sale of LaSalle to Bank of America. Instigated by this, the Royal Bank of Scotland's Association recoursed to the court. The Association consists of Belgian-Dutch Fortis NV and Spain's Banco Santander Central Hispano.
Upset with the happenings, the Bank of America has forewarned of the legal consequences it might take up against ABN Amro.
