The government long ago nationalized the banks when they used the threat of economic ruin to force them to make loans to unqualified minorities through the Community Reinvestment Act.
[Whitney is quite right of course that it's a good idea for banks to know their customers and not to rely on centralized, computerized underwriting which relies far too heavily on FICO scores]
In the early 70's, my parents moved to a new town and applied for a mortgage to buy a home. They almost didn't get the loan because the people at the local bank "didn't know them."
We've sure come a long way. And not for the better.
On Saturday, I called Chase to ask them to remove a bogus late fee on my credit card. They refused. I literally laughed at the customer service rep and told her to go to lend to some deadbeat and cancelled my account of 12 years.
I'm exactly the kind of customer these people want - I live beneath my means, have low debt/income, and ahve excellent credit. It took me no more than 5 minutes to apply and get approval online with another issuer.
I'd rather see a few months of quiet observation and careful planning rather than some loudmouthed and uninformed declaration where Citi group should be heading.
Successful companies need CEOs who are capable of patient and careful long-term strategic planning. If someone waltzed into Citi and immediately declared that he had everything figured out, you could rightfully dismiss him as full of sh*t
Executive Compensation Controversy Creates More Unintended Consequences [View article]
That's just fine with Dodd and President Affirmative Action. It frees up more money for ACORN and other assorted criminal groups.
Bank Reprivatization After Paulson [View article]
Citi: Off the Banking Reservation [View article]
Credit Card Crunch [View article]
In the early 70's, my parents moved to a new town and applied for a mortgage to buy a home. They almost didn't get the loan because the people at the local bank "didn't know them."
We've sure come a long way. And not for the better.
On Saturday, I called Chase to ask them to remove a bogus late fee on my credit card. They refused. I literally laughed at the customer service rep and told her to go to lend to some deadbeat and cancelled my account of 12 years.
I'm exactly the kind of customer these people want - I live beneath my means, have low debt/income, and ahve excellent credit. It took me no more than 5 minutes to apply and get approval online with another issuer.
These idiots still haven't learned the lesson.
I
Vikram Pandit, 'COO' of Citigroup [View article]
Successful companies need CEOs who are capable of patient and careful long-term strategic planning. If someone waltzed into Citi and immediately declared that he had everything figured out, you could rightfully dismiss him as full of sh*t
Jim Rogers' Picks and Pans - Barron's Interview [View article]
Someone needs to bone up on when to use semicolons.
"China does not want your investment as there are too much money there already."
On second thought, that may be too advanced.
Are These "Once In A Lifetime" Moves? [View article]
Selling Over? I'm Just Not Buying It. [View article]
Estimating the Risk in Citigroup Stock and Bonds [View article]