Top 10 fines imposed on banks by US
-Times of India-1st July 2014
NEW YORK: French bank BNP Paribas is expected to pay a record $9 billion fine for years of dealing with US-blacklisted Sudan and Iran, in a case that has strained ties between Paris and Washington. It will be a record US fine of a foreign bank.
Below is a list of the 10 largest fines in US banking history:
1. $25 billion: Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Bank of America, Ally Financial
In February 2012, the banks collectively agreed to pay this amount - $20 billion in various forms of relief for home-loan borrowers and $5 billion in penalties and contributions to a cash fund for unfairly foreclosed homes -- to avoid prosecution over abuses.
2. $13 billion: JPMorgan Chase The bank, Wall Street's former poster child, paid in November 2013 to resolve a series of US and state lawsuits over the sale of toxic mortgage-backed securities.
3. $11.6 billion: Bank of America One of the rare big US banks whose headquarters is not in New York, the North Carolina-based Bank of America also paid the biggest penalty for the subprime mortgage crisis. In January 2013, BofA paid this fine to settle claims that it sold US government-controlled mortgage finance giant Fannie Mae hundreds of billions of dollars' worth of dud home loans.
4. $9.5 billion: Bank of America On March 26 this year, the bank, America's second-largest lender in assets, agreed to pay $9.5 billion to settle litigation by the Federal Housing Finance Agency over mortgage securities sold to Fannie Mae and fellow agency Freddie Mac.
5. $8.5 billion: Bank of America In June 2011 the bank agreed to compensate a group of investors who said they lost money on mortgage-backed securities bought before the financial crisis.
6. $2.6 billion: Credit Suisse In May 2014 the bank pleaded guilty to helping rich Americans lie to avoid paying taxes.
7. $1.9 billion: HSBC The British bank agreed to pay up in December 2012 to avoid prosecution for complicity in money laundering.
8. $1.7 billion: JPMorgan Chase In January the bank agreed to cough up to resolve charges its lax oversight enabled Bernard Madoff to build up the massive Ponzi scheme that bilked investors of billions.
9. $1.5 billion: UBS In December 2012 the Swiss bank paid out to put an end to legal proceedings linked to the alleged fixing of the inter-bank Libor interest rate.
10. $1.0 billion: Rabobank The Dutch bank paid just over $1.0 billion in October 2013 also for proceedings over the alleged Libor rate rigging.
Other cases under way could smash these records. Bank of America is facing a possibly $12-$17 billion penalty, while Citigroup could be facing as much as $10 billion, both over bad business practices in mortgages which were the origin of the global financial crisis.
Link Times of India
Naidu's loan waiver plan hits RBI wall-Pioneer
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu’s promise of waiving the crop loans has run into unexpected problem with the Reserve Bank of India raising objections to it and questioning the rationale behind it.
While a senior RBI official wrote a letter to the State Government opposing the idea of writing off the farmers' loans, Naidu held a meeting with the State-level bankers committee to discuss the nitty-gritties of the issue.
Waiving of the crop loans was expected to cost Rs 15,000 crore to the State exchequer. RBI Executive Director Deepali Pant Joshi has written to the Government saying the policies like waiving of loans will weaken the banking system in the country and it will be an injustice to the people who repay the loans on time.
RBI official said that it would allow waiver of loan only if the State Government makes the payment in cash and it will not accept any securities from the State Government.
The letter warned that the frequent waiver of loans will hurt the fiscal discipline of the banks. RBI’s letter prominently figured in Tuesday’s meeting, which was also attended by State Finance Minister Y Ramakrishnudu and Agriculture Minister P Pulla Rao. The State Government decided to reply to the RBI letter explaining the circumstances in which the TDP had to make the promise of writing off the loans of farmers.
Sources said that Naidu, during his visit to New Delhi, on June 25 will raise the issue with Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitely and seek his approval.
After the meeting, Pulla Rao told the media that there was no need for any apprehension among the farmers over the issue of waiver of loans as the State Government was committed to it. He said that the committee set up by the Chief Minister to go in to the issue will submit its preliminary report on June 22 and a clarity will emerge by June 30. “We will implement the scheme with the approval of the Central Government and the RBI,” he said.
“If the bankers can accept one time settlement with the industrialists why not now,” Pulla Rao wondered. Soon after he took oath as the Chief Minister Naidu had set up a committee to go in to the issue of writing off the loans. Naidu promised to waive the loan within 45 days after receiving the report.
Naidu to assume office tomorrow Meanwhile, Chandrababu Naidu will assume office on Thursday when he will set his foot in the State Secretariat after a gap of 10 years. He will take the charge in his 8th floor office in the L Block of the Secretariat amid the chanting of vedic hymns by the pundits.
Thursday will be a very hectic day for Naidu as the newly elected State Assembly will also meet on the same day at 11:52 am. Earlier in the morning Naidu will also visit his camp office at the Lake View Guest House which he will be using till his office in the Secretariat is fully furnished.
State Minister for Finance and Legislative Affairs Y Ramakrishnudu, who reviewed the security arrangements at the State Assembly with the top police officials said that the old Assembly hall allotted to Andhra Pradesh was small and had little place for visitors.
“We will not be issuing any visitors passes. We have already requested the Ministers and the MLAs not to seek the visitors passes,” he said. Even the media gallery was also small and media passes will be issued in a limited number, he said.
The AP Assembly Hall is the old building in the same premises where the new Assembly Hall allocated to Telangana is situated. The semi circular hall is a historic heritage building built as Town Hall during the Nizam era. After extensive work its original glory has been restored to a large extent.
On the first day the newly elected members will take oath and the assembly will condole the death of its members. Next day the House will elect the speaker. Senior TDP leader Kodela Sivaprasad Rao was expected to become the Speaker. On June 21 Governor ESL Narasimha will address the joint session of the Assembly and Legislative Council at 8:55 am.
Singapore to help build new capital Meanwhile Minister for Municipal Affairs and Urban Development P Narayana said that the State would take the help from Singapore in building the new capital for the State.
He was speaking after meeting the representatives of the Singapore Government. “Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu wants the new capital to have world class facilities which can meet the requirements of next hundred years,” he said.
“The capital will be built in a manner that all the facilities are available at one place,” he said. Vijayawada, Guntur, Tirupati and Visakhapatanam will be developed as mega cities, he said.
Link Pioneer
