Today's News

TECHNOLOGY: THE FED has approved clarified risk-control standards for multilateral netting systems - and that's just fine with the organization that runs Clearing House Interbank Payment Systems, or Chips. "We're happy with what they decided to do," said George Thomas, senior vice president of the New York Clearing House Association. Page 19 WASHINGTON: BANKERS WILL find it much harder to keep fair-lending settlements out of the public spotlight during the coming years, industry attorneys and community activists said. Page 3 A COALITION of seven banking industry trade groups demanded the Federal Reserve Board reconsider its recent decision to change the way annual percentage yields are calculated under Truth-in-Savings. Page 2 REGIONAL BANKING: TWO SOUTHEASTERN banks, Synovus Financial and Centura, finished the year with a strong fourth quarter, helped by good loan growth and improved net interest margins. Page 5 EXPANDING its Illinois franchise, Detroit-based NBD Bancorp agreed to acquire Deerbank Corp., a $766 million-asset thrift, in a purchase transaction valued at roughly $120 million. Page 5 SMALL BUSINESS: NOBODY CAN SAY small business lenders lack moxie. Even as some in Congress talk about eliminating the Small Business Administration, lenders plan to aggressively push a legislative agenda to expand some of the agency's loan programs in the face of tight federal budgets. Page 11. MORTGAGES: THE RISE in interest rates has discouraged upper-income consumers from trading up to bigger and better homes. As a result, volume in jumbo mortgages is down. Page 12 INVESTMENT PRODUCTS: LaSALLE NATIONAL Bank is claiming success with an unusual certificate of deposit it began selling through brokers late last year. Page 14 CREDIT/DEBIT/ATMs: TOTAL SYSTEM Services Inc. announced a healthy increase in 1994 income but said some of its anticipated revenue for 1995 will not begin accruing until 1996. Page 16 FIRST USA INC. began the new year by acquiring a credit card software development company that specializes in applications for the hospitality industry. Page 17 COMMUNITY BANKING: THE S&L DEBACLE of the 1980s is still yielding some big criminal convictions - there was another last month - but investigations and trials involving individuals from the decade of greed are winding down at last. Page 8 FINANCE: PNC Bank Corp. got both a boost and a vote of no confidence from the analyst community. Back page AT A TIME when the words dangerous and derivatives are frequently paired, Commercial Bank of New York stands out as a beacon of conservatism. Back page