the ALL program has been run on this file
Most bank executives are happy to be free of merchant credit card processing, relying instead on outsourcing. Elias J. Eliopolous is different.
The executive vice president of First National Bank of Omaha presides over one of the last remaining merchant processing operations wholly within a bank - and not an awfully big bank, either. Page 11
WASHINGTON
Federal Reserve Board Governor Roger W. Ferguson Jr. warned banks against rushing to merge with insurance and securities firms. Page 2
REGIONAL
Due diligence in merger deals has become less thorough, so comprehensive oversight of post-merger integration is essential, a BankAmerica executive said. Page 5
COMMUNITY Page 6
INVESTMENT PRODUCTS
Henry Schulthesz, an executive vice president and head of bank distribution at Kemper Funds in Chicago, has left the company. Page 8
MORTGAGES
Economists are not ready to declare this year's housing boom over, but the latest data on home resales underscore a growing consensus that housing will slip next year. Page 9
DIGITAL FRONTIERS
SMART CARDS: With the dust not yet settled from Microsoft's bold move on the smart card market, Sun Microsystems issued some not-so-subtle reminders that it is no johnny-come-lately. Page 13
TECHNOLOGY
Despite the planned departures of two high-level executives from interactive banking, Wells Fargo says it will continue the initiatives that have made it a leader in on-line banking and smart cards. Page 14
CORPORATE FINANCE
With prices for some leveraged loans having soared as much as 75% since the summer, many borrowers are finding that the credit lenders have been dangling is a costly proposition. Page 16
MARKETS
Bank analyst Thomas Hanley says his gut feeling is that M&A activity will accelerate toward the close of this year then slow noticeably in the first half of 1999, giving way to year-2000 preoccupations. Page 26
Major bank shares tumbled on rumors, later denied, that Brazil was planning to devalue its currency. Back page
