BerkeleyBob

Banks Don't Intentionally Overcharge Credit Card Customers… Or Do They?

I've noted some similar problems with my gas company's credit card, now apparently handled by GE Credit. A way out is to put your checking and savings account with a credit union, which generally give their customers a fair shake.

Barron's Says Mastercard Will Rise Above $200

I read the Barron's article, but after I sold the second half of my small position in MA. I stayed with the stock when it was low, added to my position and closed it out at about a 20% gain. I like the concept of a transaction based non-financial stock without exposure to toxic loan portfolio's, etc. but think it and V a little too pricey at present...

Credit Cards: Do the Banks Own the Senate?

In response to the last post, consider the financial industry's successful resistance to bankruptcy reform which would allow "cram down" of home loans, widely used in business bankrupcy. Because they can, because no one is paying any attention.

Wall Street Breakfast: Must-Know News

I fail to see how the notion of a mortgage "cramdown" is bad policy in an individual BK, but has been part of corporate BK proceedings for years. Contracts are "impaired" in either scenario, no? Might not a BK judge be a pricing mechanism for defaulted loans?

Wall Street Breakfast: Must-Know News

The continued railing against the CRA is a bone in the throat of the free market idiologues but CRA was a relatively small part of the activities of Freddie and Fannie. Those agencies did some things wrong (accounting mis-statements, lobbying, confusion about who they were working for) and some things right.(Probably more realisitic appraisals and underwriting on their own loans) Encouragement of home ownership was a Bush-approved policy. Bush's statements about the unfolding global fiscal mess is characteristic, but irrelevant. On his watch and lax regulation, the US exported toxic debt fraudulently ratified by the rating agencies as high quality.