Court: U.S. Can Pursue Case Against BofA Over Mortgages
A federal judge rules that the U.S. can pursue parts of a civil lawsuit against Bank of America for its sale of toxic mortgages to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Countrywide Financial
Bank of America to Pay $500M to Settle Investor Lawsuit
Bank of America says it will pay $500 million to settle a class-action lawsuit involving investors who say they were misled in their purchase of mortgage-backed investments.
Bank of America Earnings Shrink Due to Mortgage Settlements
Bank of America says its fourth-quarter earnings shrank as it cleaned up old problems from its mortgage unit, settling one case with Fannie Mae and another with the government. But the modestly positive results still beat the expectations of analysts.
U.S. Sues Bank of America for $1 Billion for Mortgage Fraud
The top federal prosecutor in Manhattan says he's suing Bank of America for $1 billion for mortgage fraud against Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara says Countrywide had procedures designed to process loans at high speed and generated thousands of fraudulent loans.
Bank of America Beats the Street with a Narrow Profit
Bank of America said Wednesday that it narrowly turned a profit from July through September, good enough to beat Wall Street expectations. The bank earned $340 million in the quarter, which works out to a fraction of a penny per share. But financial analysts expected an 11-cent loss.
Countrywide Bank Won Influence with Discount Loans to VIPs: Report
The former Countrywide Financial, whose subprime loans helped start the foreclosure crisis, made hundreds of discount loans to buy influence with members of Congress, congressional staff, top government officials and executives of Fannie Mae, according to a House report.
Americans Are Still Paying the Tab for Countrywide's Misdeeds
Once, Countrywide Financial was the biggest U.S. mortgage lender, and the bloated appraisals it gave on homes were a root cause of the housing bubble. Here's why we're all still paying for Countrywide's bad behavior.
Morningstar Breaks Its Own Rules on Splitting the Top Jobs
Investment research firm Morningstar is steadfast in its view that the chairman who oversees a CEO shouldn't also be the CEO: Separation of the roles is a key point on its corporate governance checklist ... except when it comes to its own founder, Joe Mansueto.
Did Warren Buffett Make a Bad Call on Bank of America?
When Warren Buffett announced in August that he would spend $5 billion to snap up Bank of America shares, investors cheered. Surely this must mean that we've seen the end of the bad news from America's biggest bank, right? Wrong. So did the Oracle of Omaha blunder?
Why Bank of America Will Never Be Great Again
Bank of America did the right thing this week, nixing its notorious $5 a month debit card fee before it began. But B of A can't win, and even now, financial journalists are wondering how it will find ways to nickel and dime its way back from this week's fee retreat at the expense of its customers.
Bank Settlements Bring Homeowners a Bit of Relief
This week brought a bit of good news for some troubled homeowners in the form of two separate settlement activities. The FTC has begun mailing refund checks to 450,000 Countrywide customers, and Wells Fargo reached an $85 million settlement with the Fed that will provide relief to up to 10,000 customers.
The Financial Landscape: BAC Settles, FINRA Flexes
Bank of America will soon finalize an $8.5 billion agreement to settle investor claims that Countrywide sold them lousy mortgage-backed securities before the housing bust. Meanwhile, private regulator FINRA is angling to take over the watchdog role for registered investment advisers.
Why Bank of America Sold Its BlackRock Stake
BlackRock, the world's largest publicly traded asset management firm, recently agreed to buy back Bank of America's remaining 7% stake in the company for about $2.5 billion. Trefis looks at why Bank of America is selling, what the buyback means for BlackRock, and what the effect will be for its stock.
What's Really Wrong With Letting Banks Pay Big Dividends
The Federal Reserve is finally admitting that not all the big banks are healthy: Bank of America won't get to pay increased dividends. But none of those financial giants should be allowed to, and a logical look at the reasons they say they want to dole out the cash makes it totally clear why.