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☆ Revolut's US CEO outlined the threat Apple's new high-yield savings account poses to neobanks
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Paige Hagy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The CEO of at least one digital bank is keeping an eye on Apple's new high-yield savings account. The Big Tech giant launched a savings account with a 4.15% annual percentage yield (APY) through its partnership with Goldman Sachs on April 17. In its first four days of launch, it brought in nearly $1 billion in deposits, according to reporting by Forbes. The savings account is only available to people who have Apple Card — Apple's credit card — but the account has no minimum deposit or balance requirement. Apple's savings account beats this average by tenfold.

☆ Analysis: Overexposed US regional banks could sell commercial property loans
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Matt Tracy | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Still, previously unreported data from New York-based real estate data provider Trepp, shared with Reuters, show many regional banks' holdings exceed thresholds stipulated by regulators. While big banks have recently warned about CRE exposure, the new Trepp data underscores how acute and widespread the problem is across the banking sector. The regulatory guidance requires that banks exceeding these thresholds "should employ heightened risk management practices," including potential sales of specific loans. Meanwhile, New York Community Bancorp (NYCB.N) and Flagstar Bank [RIC:RIC:FBCANK.UL] were among the top five banks listed by Trepp that exceeded the CRE loan threshold. In Tuesday congressional testimony, FDIC chair Martin Gruenberg warned CRE loan portfolios "face challenges" should market conditions persist.

☆ Major investors loaded up on regional bank stocks during a turbulent first quarter
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Yun Li | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Einhorn's Greenlight Capital took small stakes in New York Community Bancorp and First Citizens Bancshares in the first quarter, with each bet worth about $20 million, according to a regulatory filing. New York Community Bancorp's subsidiary, Flagstar, acquired Signature Bank assets after that bank was shuttered , while First Citizens bought a large portion of Silicon Valley Bank assets . New York Community shares are up nearly 20% this year, while First Citizens' stock has jumped more than 68% on the year. 'Big Short' Burry of "Big Short" fame snapped up a slew of regional banks last quarter, including New York Community Bancorp , Capital One Financial , Western Alliance , PacWest Bancorp and Huntington Bancshares during the first quarter. To make matters more confusing, the conglomerate dumped its remaining stakes in Bank of New York Mellon and U.S. Bancorp .

WASHINGTON, May 15 (Reuters) - Top U.S. banking regulators plan to tell lawmakers the government will be open to future bank mergers, but are committed to establishing tougher rules after recent turmoil. Barr maintained his commitment to overhauling bank rules to ensure firms do not escape stricter oversight because they are smaller or viewed as less risky. "The prudential regulation and supervision of these institutions merits additional attention, particularly with respect to capital, liquidity, and interest rate risk," he said in prepared testimony. While vowing to draft tougher rules, the agencies have also been criticized for not identifying and preventing weaknesses before the lenders failed. In prepared testimony, he said rapid interest rate increases and social media-fueled rumors drove the "unprecedented" bank run that sank his firm.

WASHINGTON, May 15 (Reuters) - A U.S. banking regulator plans to tell lawmakers his agency is "open-minded" when it comes to potential bank mergers and would act on any proposed deal in a timely fashion. Recent turmoil has added "urgency" to the OCC's work on updating bank merger guidelines, Hsu said. Tuesday's hearing will be the first for regulators since the FDIC agreed to sell failed First Republic Bank to JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) this month. Watchdogs have been under intense scrutiny after the collapses of SVB and Signature set off fears of contagion. In prepared testimony, he said rapid interest rate increases and social media-fueled rumors drove the "unprecedented" bank run that sank his firm.

☆ In the Market: Why US regional banks are doomed to a doom loop
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Paritosh Bansal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Brian SnyderMay 15 (Reuters) - Banking regulators have been pushed by market volatility in recent weeks into doing things that they haven't really wanted to do, like letting the largest U.S. bank get even bigger. Take the case of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (FDIC), one of the main banking regulators. These banks provide credit to vast sections of the U.S. economy, and deposit flight has forced them to pull back on lending. They have provided banks with lifelines that give them enough cash to meet deposit withdrawals, for example. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Saturday that nearly all banks had access to sufficient liquidity but pressure on earnings may lead to some midsize bank deals.

☆ Regional Banks Can’t Catch a Break
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Telis Demos | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Western Alliance said its deposits recently rose. Photo: patrick t. fallon/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesRegional bank stocks were further discounted this past week. It isn’t hard to find some positive indicators for regional banks’ business right now. For one, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. on Thursday said that its plan to make up for losses in the deposit insurance fund would charge banks based on their amount of uninsured deposits above $5 billion at the end of last year—which tilts the cost toward larger banks. That could help smaller banks offer more-competitive deposit rates.

☆ David Einhorn's Greenlight Capital bets on pair of regional banking stocks
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Alex Harring | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

David Einhorn joined other big investors in shares in several regional bank stocks last quarter in a bet that the financial institutions would survive the industry crisis that felled Silicon Valley and First Republic banks. That's the bank whose subsidiary, Flagstar, acquired Signature Bank assets after that bank was shuttered. Einhorn's additions come amid a broad selloff of regional bank stocks on concern more institutions could fail as depositors withdrew assets and the value of banks' bond holdings narrowed. "Big Short" investor Michael Burry also bought regional bank stocks last quarter. Outside of the bank stocks, Einhorn notably increased exposure to Concentrix , Gulfport Energy and Tenet Healthcare .

☆ Stocks week ahead: SVB and Signature Bank execs are set to testify next week
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-14 | by ( Krystal Hur | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

The US Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs is holding three hearings this coming week centered around the collapses of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank in March. ET : Greg Becker, former chief executive, Silicon Valley Bank; Scott Shay, former chairman and co-founder, Signature Bank and Eric Howell, former president, Signature Bank. ET : Mark Bialek, inspector general, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau; Paul Kupiec, senior fellow, American Enterprise Institute and more. Since then, the Federal Reserve and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation have released reports detailing management missteps at SVB and Signature Bank, as well as federal regulators’ own mistakes in properly addressing red flags preceding the banks’ demises. A separate report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York on Friday shows that American households are becoming increasingly frugal.

☆ AMERICAS Debt cap tick-tock leaves eerie calm
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The issue dominated much of the G7 finance chiefs meeting in Japan. Dimon claimed any technical default could cause financial panic and JPMorgan had convened a 'war room' internally to deal with the issue. "It's very unfortunate, it's time-consuming, hopefully it won't happen, but it affects contracts, collateral, clearing houses, clients," Dimon said. Chinese stocks underperformed, with the G7 meeting mulling restrictions on investment to the world's second-biggest economy. Bank of England chief economist Huw Pill speaksReuters GraphicsJobless claimsReuters GraphicsReuters GraphicsBy Mike Dolan, editing by Christina Fincher, <a href="mailto:mike.dolan@thomsonreuters.com" target="_blank">mike.dolan@thomsonreuters.com</a>.

☆ Blackstone, Apollo were among about 20 bidders for SVB's assets
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

May 10 (Reuters) - Blackstone Inc (BX.N) and Apollo Global Management (APO.N) were among about 20 bidders for some assets of collapsed Silicon Valley Bank, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) said on Wednesday. PNC Financial Services (PNC.N), Valley Bank, Citizens Bank and BankUnited (BKU.N) were also among the bidders, the FDIC said in a summary document, adding that one or more bidders submitted more than one bid. The bids, which closed on March 10, were followed by First Citizens BancShares (FCNCA.O) purchasing all the loans and deposits of SVB later that month. That was since eclipsed by First Republic Bank which was seized by regulators in early May and sold to JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N). The deal announced in March said First Citizens would acquire SVB's assets of $110 billion, deposits of $56 billion and loans of $72 billion.

☆ Blackstone, Apollo were among bidders for SVB's assets
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

May 10 (Reuters) - Blackstone Inc (BX.N), Apollo Global Management (APO.N) were among the bidders for some assets of bankrupt Silicon Valley Bank, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) said on Wednesday. PNC Financial Services (PNC.N), Valley Bank, Citizens Bank and BankUnited (BKU.N) were also part of the 19 bidders, the FDIC said. Reporting by Jahnavi Nidumolu in Bengaluru; Editing by Sandra MalerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ U.S. government posts smaller $176 bln April surplus as revenues shrink
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( David Lawder | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Revenues for April totaled $639 billion, the second-highest level since the April 2022 record of $864 billion, but a decrease of 26%. A U.S. Treasury official said the bulk of the decline was due to lower non-withheld individual tax receipts, reflecting lower stock market capital gains in 2022. Individual withheld tax receipts for April grew 3% from a year earlier to $252 billion, while non-withheld taxes fell 34% to $358 billion. Corporate tax receipts also fell 11% to $85 billion and the Federal Reserve again had no earnings in April, after contributing $10 billion to April 2022 receipts. But the official declined to comment on the outlook for current and future revenues, including whether higher refund levels would continue.

☆ SVB Financial Group says quarterly results filing will be delayed
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

May 9 (Reuters) - SVB Financial Group will not be able to meet the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's deadline for reporting its quarterly results, the bankrupt parent of Silicon Valley Bank disclosed in a filing on Tuesday. SVB Financial said its limited staff was dedicated to exploring strategic alternatives for the remaining businesses. Californian regulators shuttered Silicon Valley Bank in early March and appointed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) as receiver. The failures of SVB and Signature Bank triggered the biggest banking crisis since 2008, fueling volatility in the stocks of several regional lenders and exacerbating recession fears. Reporting by Manya Saini in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini GanguliOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

May 8 (Reuters) - PacWest Bancorp (PACW.O) shares pared early gains on Monday, dragging down other U.S. regional banking stocks, as the Los Angeles-based lender's decision to slash its quarterly dividend failed to stem worries about its financial stability. Other U.S. regional banks also retreated. REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo 1 2The KBW Regional Banking index (.KRX) fell 2.82% after gaining nearly 4.7%. But hedge funds, which often engage in short selling, pushed back on Monday, saying in a letter to Gensler that a ban would be counterproductive. Yellen said it is in the SEC's purview to regulate short selling although there is a high bar for any controls if evidence of market manipulation was found.

May 8 (Reuters) - PacWest Bancorp (PACW.O) shares pared early gains on Monday, dragging down other U.S. regional banking stocks, as the Los Angeles-based lender's decision to slash its quarterly dividend failed to stem worries about its financial stability. "The dividend cut is not a good sign," said Jamie Cox, managing partner at Harris Financial Group. Other U.S. regional banks also retreated. The KBW Regional Banking index (.KRX) fell 1.5% after gaining nearly 4.7%. "I have a general fear that smaller banks are going to disappear, and we're going to end up with just a few large banks."

☆ Fed survey: Banks are tightening up their lending standards after rate hikes, turmoil
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-08 | by ( Alicia Wallace | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Survey respondents attributed the changes in lending standards to economic uncertainty, a reduced appetite for risk, deterioration in collateral values and broader concerns about banks’ funding costs and liquidity positions, according to the Fed report. At the time, banks expected that trend of tightening credit, waning demand and deteriorating loan quality would continue. Fed president: Central bank should weigh effectsFederal Reserve Bank of Chicago President Austan Goolsbee said in an interview with Yahoo! Fed officials, including Chair Powell, have previously noted that credit tightening could act similarly to a rate hike. A ‘salient risk’Separately on Monday, the Fed released its semi-annual Financial Stability Report, which assesses the resilience of the US financial system.

☆ The Week in Business: The 10th Straight Rate Increase
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-07 | by ( Marie Solis | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +4 min

It was the third consecutive increase of that size and the 10th straight rate increase since last March. This encroaching deadline presents a tricky political problem for Mr. Biden. Republicans are trying to extract concessions from Mr. Biden that would significantly undermine his agenda. He could negotiate spending cuts but divorce those discussions from the debt limit. There is one other possible option: a constitutional challenge to the debt limit, a long-shot plan that would rely on a clause in the 14th Amendment.

☆ Warren Buffett says Berkshire is cautious on banking sector
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-06 | by ( John Mccrank | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Rachel MummeyNEW YORK, May 6 (Reuters) - Warren Buffett on Saturday said Berkshire Hathaway (BRKa.N) is cautious around the banking sector, largely because of poor messaging by officials around government-insured deposits, as well as distorted incentives he said were brought on by banking regulation. "The U.S. government and the American public have no interest in having a bank fail and having deposits actually lost by people," he said. Part of the reason for that is that incentives in banking regulation are "so messed up," he said. First Republic Bank, the latest regional U.S. bank to fail, disclosed that it was offering non-guaranteed jumbo-sized mortgages at fixed rates in its annual report. "The incentives in bank regulation are so messed up and so many people have an interest in having them messed up -- it's totally crazy," Buffett said.

☆ Warren Buffett says letting Silicon Valley Bank customers go under would’ve been 'catastrophic’
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-06 | by ( Hugh Son | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Shareholders watch Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger from the overflow room during the Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting on Saturday, May 6, 2023, in Omaha, Neb. Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett said Saturday that regulators avoided a financial disaster by making sure that Silicon Valley Bank customers didn't lose money in the firm's collapse. "It would've been catastrophic" if regulators hadn't done that, Buffet said during his annual shareholder meeting. Allowing uninsured depositors to lose money would've "started a run on every bank in the country," he said. Protecting uninsured depositors contributed to the estimated $20 billion hit that the FDIC's Deposit Insurance Fund took in the SVB receivership.

The latest case in point: The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (FDIC) chose JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) as the winning bidder in an auction to buy collapsed lender First Republic Bank on Monday. FDIC officials, however, say would-be buyers risk losing out if they allow the value of an acquisition target to deteriorate over time while waiting for an FDIC receivership. SWEETENERSU.S. bank mergers were already sluggish as interest rates rose and recession loomed, analysts at Raymond James wrote in an Apr. The first quarter was the quietest opening to a year for bank deals in a generation, they said. Market volatility stops bank buyers from pulling together enough money to cover writedowns on struggling assets, which would be triggered by a traditional acquisition, said David Sandler, co-head of financial services investment banking at Piper Sandler Companies (PIPR.N).

☆ FDIC mulls loss-sharing with nonbanks to boost bids on failed lenders, Bloomberg reports
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

May 5 (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (FDIC) is mulling whether to offer loss-sharing agreements to private equity firms and other nonbanks that buy parts of failed lenders, after it was left holding a large portfolio of Signature Bank loans following its collapse, Bloomberg News reported on Friday. Since the FDIC does not regulate nonbanks, the firms cannot bid for an entire lender but such a move could entice them to buy loans and assets at a discount from collapsed institutions and help the FDIC get higher bids, the report said. The FDIC did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. Earlier this week, JPMorgan (JPM.N) entered into a loss-sharing agreement with the FDIC when it agreed to assume all of First Republic's deposits but share losses on certain portfolios including residential and commercial loans. Reporting by Juby Babu in BengaluruOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Here are the 5 key takeaways from this year's Milken Global conference
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Dakin Campbell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

The pullback by banks is raising the hopes of those in the private credit industry. Some panelists and others who spoke in the hallways of the event suggested that there was a large-scale handoff from private equity to private credit. Many private-equity firms are scrambling to raise private credit funds to take advantage. "I don't think this is the end of private equity, but the environment certainly favors private credit," he said. And that will show up in lower returns for private credit funds, she said.

☆ Regional bank stocks rebound on Friday, but still headed for steep losses on the week
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Jesse Pound | In Jesse-Pound | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Regional bank stocks were poised to bounce back on Friday, but the beaten down sector was still on track for steep losses for the week after the failure of First Republic. PacWest entered down more than 68% for the week and closed at just $3.17 per share on Thursday. Analysts at JPMorgan Chase upgraded Western Alliance, Zions and Comerica to overweight on Friday, saying the bank stocks "appear substantially mispriced to us." Many on Wall Street are looking to Washington for regulatory changes to calm the banking system, such as potentially expanding deposit insurance rules. Some have raised the possibility of temporarily banning short-selling on bank stocks.

☆ Apple and fintechs like Robinhood chase yield-hungry depositors as Fed rate hikes continue
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Rohan Goswami | In Rohangoswamicnbc | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

Last month, the iPhone maker launched its Apple Card savings account with a generous 4.15% APY in partnership with Wall Street giant Goldman Sachs . "It's really a trade-off for consumers, between safety or the appearance of safety, and yield," Laplanche told CNBC. Still, the emerging group of high-yield savings products are much more mainstream than what the crypto platforms were promoting. SoFi launched its high-yield savings account in February of last year. In its annual SEC filing, the company said that offering checking and high-yield savings accounts provided "more daily interactions with our members."

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