WASHINGTON
The recent wave of mergers has put the OCC's three deputy comptrollers in charge of large-bank supervision under intense pressure to make sure that the deals are pulled off smoothly. Page 2
REGIONAL
Opponents have killed a bill in the California Legislature that would have protected BankAmerica from a $1 billion lawsuit alleging it had mishandled billions of dollars of municipal bonds. Page 5
MORTGAGES
The state of Vermont claims HomeSide Lending illegally used money from customers' escrow accounts to pay legal fees incurred defending a nationwide escrow suit. Page 10
INVESTMENT PRODUCTS
to streamline its asset management business, Associated Banc-Corp is consolidating four trust units to form an investment management subsidiary. Page 13
COMMUNITY
State-chartered banks in Texas border towns could reap rewards from a state decision to follow the OCC's lead on allowing interstate branching. Having lost a court challenge to the federal policy in a case involving NationsBank, Catherine A. Ghiglieri, Texas banking commissioner, changed state policy. Page 7
The unusual ownership structure that links four Virginia community banks has helped them strike a deal to buy branches from First Union. Page 7
DIGITAL FRONTIERS
ON-LINE BANKING: Forrester Research, a firm known for framing its messages in terminology of its own coinage, introduced some choice new words to a financial services audience. Page 16
TECHNOLOGY Page 17
CORPORATE FINANCE
Critics say a $725 million syndicated loan to Regal Cinemas may be the feel-good hit of the summer-but it could become a thriller in years to come. Page 25
MARKETS
First Hawaiian is in talks to merge with the California unit of Banque Nationale de Paris in a transaction valued at about $1 billion, two people familiar with the negotiations said. Back page
WEEKLY REPORT: INTERNATIONAL
NationsBank is setting up a Cayman Islands subsidiary as its main international banking unit, with affiliated operations in Dublin and Amsterdam. Page 8
