Word: banks
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...December, when Brian Moynihan was tapped to be the chief executive of Bank of America, many said he got the job because no one else would take it. Just days before, Robert Kelly, the CEO of Bank of New York Mellon, had become the latest high-profile executive to turn down the post. But in the three months since Moynihan, 50, has taken over the reins at the nation's largest bank, he has used a mix of consumer-friendly initiatives, Washington face time and attention to detail to win over critics. Consumer advocates have applauded the bank's moves...
Moynihan, of course, still has a lot of work to do. He still has to turn around Bank of America's large credit-card business, which has consistently had higher loss rates than competitors. The bank has also been without a chief financial officer since mid-January, though people close to the search say Moynihan recently narrowed his choices down to three people. And Moynihan may have to answer recent claims that the bank used Lehman-like accounting maneuvers to hide assets. Bank of America has denied the allegations. (See the best business deals...
Nonetheless, for now, Moynihan seems to be making more friends than enemies. So far, his boldest moves have to do with consumers. First of all, in February, the bank stopped charging customers overdraft fees on debit-card purchases they couldn't afford. Instead, when someone doesn't have enough money in their account to cover the purchase, Bank of America simply declines the transaction...
...stay-at-home mom when I learned that people in default can include borrowers like my husband, who had never missed a payment but whose bank decided not to renew his company's line of credit. This was in 2006, when lenders were starting to rein in aggressive loans made to small businesses. In the case of my husband, a wholesale supplier whose revenues were declining, the credit line that started at $250,000--and steadily increased for six years--matured, was briefly extended and then was cut at the bank's discretion. The bank FedExed my husband...
...what happened to us? Three years, two judges, one magistrate and many a lawyer later, our case was settled--the same surreal week the bank was bought by another bank. Now that our debt has been paid and the liens on our house have been lifted, we can focus on making a living as a team, enjoying our family and paying off our looming legal bills. I recently came upon a Benjamin Franklin quote that rings true: "He that goes a-borrowing goes a-sorrowing." Just make sure that if you do borrow, you know what's at stake...