Sharp bookkeepers could spot a kite in progress, but, more often than not, they were too hurried to give the ledgers a second look.

Editor's Note: Morning Scan will not publish on Monday, May 27, in observance of the Memorial Day holiday. Receiving Wide Coverage ... Goldman's Reforms: The highlight of Goldman Sachs' "otherwise muted" shareholders meeting was news that the investment firm has implemented 39 initiatives designed to strengthen its business practices — and reputation — in the wake of the scandals following the financial crisis. These initiatives include "greater balance-sheet transparency" and "a more rigorous system for ensuring employees…

With a litany of bipartisan reasons to oppose FATCA, ranging from privacy and sovereignty to U.S. economic competitiveness, it is startling that the legislation has advanced as far as it has.

Receiving Wide Coverage ... Fed's Mixed Message: The Federal Reserve sent a "garbled message" about the fate of its QE3 program on Wednesday. First, Chairman Ben Bernanke endorsed ongoing stimulus efforts while testifying at a congressional hearing, though he did reveal the central bank could begin to slow down bond-buying in its "next few meetings," labor market conditions permitting. Then, just hours later, April meeting minutes revealed some Fed officials were hoping to pare down the…

The more that compensation designs depart from well-grounded pay-for-performance principles, including appropriate metrics and actual financial results, the less effective they are as an incentive

The most effective housing reform would let the GSEs do what they do best: act as a conduit for private capital to enter the residential lending market.

As much as David Fiderer and others try to defend the GSEs and the policies that drove them into insolvency, the taxpayers who bailed them out are unlikely to be fooled.

The tech company's new services represent a virtual slap in the face for the likes of banks and PayPal. If added to Google Glass, they potentially represent a knockout punch.

Receiving Wide Coverage ...

Dimon's Big Day: The votes are in and it's Jamie Dimon by a landslide. After all the hoopla, the still chairman and CEO of JPMorgan Chase won the support of 68% of shareholders who rejected a proposal to strip him of the dual roles. For those keeping score, that means 32% voted in favor of separating the titles, a decrease from the 40% of shareholders who supported a similar proposal last year.…

Advance America responds to One PacificCoast Bank.

Until a mechanism to shut the biggest and baddest is well in place, the prospect of taxpayer bailout will distort financial markets and handicap competitors.

For all their analytic complexity, the Basel capital standards simplemindedly view each type of risk in isolation. In reality, an increase in one type of risk may lower another.

The swap execution facility regime in Dodd-Frank, once championed as the magic pill to cure the problems in the derivatives market, is turning out to be less potent than hoped.

Receiving Wide Coverage ...

National News: A devastating tornado swept through Oklahoma yesterday. Full news coverage: Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Financial Times

D-Day for Dimon: Today is the day JPMorgan Chase shareholders will vote on a proposal to strip Jamie Dimon of his dual title as chairman and CEO. Bad news for Dimon detractors: Shareholder activists pushing for the proposal were "talking down the prospects of winning" the vote after regaining access to preliminary tallies…