Today's News

Citibank is persevering in its quest to wire the nation for electronic benefits transfer. Marc MacKenzie, executive director of global cash management services at Citicorp, says of the effort: "We're really focused on two things--bringing up quality programs and winning new business." Page 16 WASHINGTON Sen. Alfonse D'Amato continued his diatribe against ATM surcharges, but his bill to ban them is unlikely to pass. Page 2 REGIONAL BANKING Missouri plans to close a loophole that lets banks buy thrifts even if doing so puts them over a 13% cap on deposit market share. Page 6 A West Coast lender is suing Barnett, which it claims defrauded it in a complex conspiracy that involved payoffs to bank officials. Page 7 INVESTMENT PRODUCTS BankAmerica's planned acquisition of Robertson Stephens comes with a bonus: a tripling of the bank's stock mutual fund assets under management. Page 10 COMMUNITY BANKING A long-troubled Los Angeles bank is seeking fresh capital, but a San Diego bankruptcy lawyer is trying to trip it up. Page 12 CREDIT/DEBIT/ATMs Credomatic International, a Costa Rica-based card processor, obtained Mondex franchising rights for seven Central American countries. Page 17 TECHNOLOGY ON-LINE BANKING: The number of users in the United States will more than double, to 2.1 million, by 2000, a report says. Page 18 MARKET MONITOR Sallie Mae's stock price soared after its chief executive announced his imminent departure. Back page WEEKLY REPORT: INTERNATIONAL A spate of banking crises abroad has U.S. bankers and analysts questioning whether pricing on loans and bonds adequately reflects risk. Page 8