I keep reading and it says that I can “reject this amendment” by doing so in writing by 2/29/2008.
banks
Bank Says It Has Lost $7 Billion, Blames "Rogue Trader"
By 1.24.08
The French bank Societe Generale has announced that a trader “concealed massive trading positions built up over 2007 and 2008 through ‘a scheme of elaborate fictitious transactions,'” which ended up losing the bank 7.1 billion dollars. That’s as much damage by a single employee as the subprime-related losses the bank reported in the past two months. Oops.
When A House Is A Bad Investment, Is It OK To Just Walk Away?
By 1.24.08
Here’s one that’s sure to start some intense debate: If you’ve made a bad investment and your house isn’t worth what you thought it was going to be, is it OK to just walk away?
By 1.22.08
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Wachovia’s 4Q earnings get hammered by the subprime meltdown. [Bloomberg]
Who Do I Complain About A Bank To?
By 1.22.08
If you think your bank is doing something so bad that it violates banking regulations, here are the groups that officially regulate banks. Complaining to them might not help your individual issue, but enough complaints could bring some attention on the banks that they would prefer to avoid:
Swapped Cash From HSBC Direct To E*TRADE
By 1.22.08
Today’s interest rate cut means online savings accounts lovers will once again experience heartbreak as their high-interest accounts become even less so. There is still one company offering rates from the what now must be seen as halcyon days; E*TRADE’s online savings accounts give you 5.05%, though it’s not without caveats…
Launch An ACS EECB
By 1.22.08
Here are email addresses you can use to launch an EECB (executive email carpet bomb) against ACS, a student lending company that’s a subsidiary of PNC bank.
World Economy Feels The Mortgage Meltdown
By 1.22.08
On a day when United States markets were closed in observance of Martin Luther King’s Birthday, the world’s eyes were trained nervously on the United States. Investors reacted with what many analysts described as panic to the multiplying signs of weakness in the American economy.
Suing Big Companies In Small Claims Court Is Fun And Easy
By 1.21.08
Taking a big company to small claims court sounds like a big hassle but reader Bill has done it successfully three times. He says the time and effort spent on taking a company to small claims court is far less then how it long it takes to get companies to fix above-average in complexity problems. [More]
Washington Mutual's Internal Breastfeeding Policy
By 1.18.08
A source inside Washington Mutual has sent us the internal company policy on workplace lactation. They say that they found it amusing that the bank regulates employee’s breast-milk. Overall, the policy is mainly about how one needs to go to special lactation rooms to express one’s milk (for the unaware, that’s what it’s really called). Facility specialists are available if the lactation rooms aren’t up to snuff, and company consultants are on call if you have any questions about expressing your breast milk. Elsewhere, a business writer says that, “Workplace lactation programs are inexpensive way to reduce employee absenteeism, lower health insurance costs, and improve employee retention.” Overall, it’s actually a pretty good policy, but it’s interesting to see how they talk about breastfeeding in corp speak. Oh, by the way, if you express your milk at work and store it there, make sure to label it and take it home at the end of the day. Thanks.
Walmart's Debit Card Has Lots Of Hidden Fees
By 1.17.08
Great idea, tap into the “unbanked,” and then rip them off. Here’s an even better idea for potential Walmart Debit Card users: cash! No fees!
By 1.17.08
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When 5/3 Bank acquired another bank, a computer glitch in the records merging splooged incorrect information into thousands of customer accounts, in some cases totally fudging up their credit reports and credit histories. The bank says it’s fixed everything but one customer says that’s not true and lost three loans due to the errors. [Orlando Sentinel via U.S. PIRG Consumer Blog]
EECB Scores Direct Hit On Student Lender ACS
By 1.16.08
Adam shares his success story in using an EECB (executive email carpet bomb) to get his student loan company to fix his botched loan after a year of runarounds and empty promises:
In January 2007, I took out a Graduate Plus Loan to cover a couple of courses at George Washington University. I was in-school half-time from mid-January to mid-May of 2007. Accordingly, I should have been covered by an in-school deferment through May of 2007. Well, unknown to me, my lender, ACS (as sub-lender to PNC bank) decided that I actually needed to be making student loan payments while in school and never decided to tell me about it!
Phishers Turn To Text Messages
By 1.16.08
Phishers are now turning to text messages to get people to fork over their personal banking information. Con artists targeting southwest Missouri sent text messages to hundreds of cellphone users, telling them that their bank account expired and directing them to a fake website with a URL containing the bank’s name. There the website captured the login and password of anyone who logged in. Phishers will use any medium they can. If you receive a message purporting to be from your bank and you’re not sure if it’s legit, call your bank directly to verify its authenticity
"Major Retailer's" Data Breach Results In Wave Of Credit Card Fraud?
By 1.15.08
Anecdotal evidence suggests that a recently reported data breach by an undisclosed “major retailer” has resulted in a jump in consumers having their debit cards forcibly reissued, or calls from their bank to verify their recent purchase history. The problems seem to have started just around Christmas time and have continued into mid-January.
3 Deer Attack Pittsburgh-Area Furniture Store
By 1.15.08
A group of three deer attacked a Pittsburgh-area furniture rental store, breaking windows and leaving a trail of hair and blood as they rampaged through the sales floor, says WPXI.
