Banking News

RISING confidence among consumers about the outlook for the economy has helped the services sector expand for the first time in 15 months in June, a survey shows.

Jim B. Estabrook Jr. has been selected as the next board chairman for Hancock Holding Co., parent of Hancock Bank.

For the third time this year, a Snohomish County-based community bank has been reprimanded by the federal government.

First Financial Bancorp has acquired three banking centers from Irwin Financial Corp.

Chase bank said Thursday it would accept government IOUs from California through July 10 to help its customers as the state deals with a financial crisis.

Federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty answers questions after a meeting with his provincial and territorial counterparts in Mississauga, Ont.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Bank of America Corp. said Thursday its board has authorized roughly $713 million in dividend payments to the U.S. government under the troubled asset relief program.

Leaders who took over in Honduras after ousting President Manuel Zelaya will not negotiate despite an ultimatum from the Organization of American States to hand back power within 72 hours, interim president Roberto Micheletti told AFP.

Nomura Holdings Inc. , Japana s largest brokerage, may say as early as today that ita s buying Citigroup Inc.

The European Central Bank meets today in Luxembourg as the threat of deflation looms over the recession-hit euro zone.

A struggling Hawaii bank received a $135 million federal bailout last fall two weeks after staff from the office of Sen.

Mizuho Financial Group Inc. , Japana s third-largest bank by market value, will raise as much as 655 billion yen from selling shares after local and overseas investments depleted capital.

Fitch Ratings has cut its rating on regional banker Whitney Holding Corp. citing its nonperforming assets, much of them related to Florida real estate.

The third quarter is starting on a positive note after a mixed bag of economic data.

Citigroup Inc has increased interest rates on up to 15 million U.S. credit card accounts just months before curbs on such rises come into effect, the Financial Times reported citing people close to the situation.

The Associated Press 1 comment Three international organizations canceled $1.2 billion of Haiti's debt Tuesday, freeing up millions of dollars each year for the deeply impoverished Caribbean nation that is beset by humanitarian crises.

Bank of America Corp. denied accusations that its retail practices pressure consumers into needlessly costly products that contributed to the credit crisis.

American International Group Inc.'s annual shareholder meeting ended without drama Tuesday after a handful of shareholders voiced disappointment over the embattled insurer's near-collapse last fall.

The filing, which comes amid several published reports that the case may be near settlement, urges U.S. District Judge Alan S. Gold to hold UBS accountable for conducting years of illegal business on U.S. soil a ' business that earned the bank more than $100 million in fees but cost the U.S. hundreds of millions of dollars in unpaid taxes.

Former ski mogul Les Otten says he has formed an exploratory committee to consider a bid for governor as a Republican in 2010.