In Brief (four items)

Citi's Salomon Unit Gains Ground in Syndicated Loans

A bustling first quarter for Salomon Smith Barney's syndicated loan business helped the Citigroup Inc. unit grab a big chunk of market share from its nearest competitors and vault to second place on the quarterly list of top banking companies in the U.S. syndicated loan market.Salomon had proceeds of $21.6 billion, an 11.7% market share, according to data released Friday by Thomson Financial Securities Data Co., an affiliate of American Banker. Last year Salomon was ranked fourth, with an 8% share.

The list, known in the industry as a league table, ranks Chase Manhattan Corp. as the market leader for the quarter, with proceeds of $73.9 billion, a 39.9% market share, Securities Data said. Chase also was ranked first in the first quarter of 1999, with a 33.9% market share.

Banc of America Securities LLC, meanwhile, had its market share sliced in half. The company slipped to third place, with proceeds of $16 billion, or a 9.1% share. Last year the Bank of America Corp. unit had an 18% share.

J.P. Morgan & Co. slipped to fourth place, with proceeds of $12 billion and a 6.6% share. It was ranked third last year, with 9.6% of the market.

Bank One Corp. held on to fifth place, with proceeds of $8.1 billion, or 4.4% of the market, down slightly from a 4.8% share last year.


Chicago Fed Bias Suit a Class Action

CHICAGO - A federal judge granted class-action status last week to a lawsuit alleging racial discrimination at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.Attorney Edward Stein, who represented 14 plaintiffs in a suit filed in 1998, said the class-action status, granted by U.S. District Judge William Hibbler, will cover all African-American employees, going back to 1964, who wish to participate. That could be as many 2,000 people, he said. At a minimum, he said, "claims could amount to $50 million to $100 million."

- Dow Jones


Wamu Hires Commercial Banking Chief

SEATTLE - Washington Mutual Inc. said Friday that it named U.S. Bancorp executive Chris Rasmussen president of its commercial banking group.Mr. Rasmussen, a 20-year commercial banking veteran, succeeds Sally Jewell, who recently decided to take a position as chief operating officer of Recreational Equipment Inc., a Seattle-based outdoor retailer, Washington Mutual said.

Mr. Rasmussen will be responsible for managing the group's Western Bank and WM Business Bank, as well as the commercial real estate lending and commercial real estate asset management divisions. At U.S. Bancorp, he was vice chairman and business banking division manager for a 16-state franchise.


LaSalle Completes Consolidation of Units

CHICAGO -- LaSalle National Corp said Friday that it expected to complete the consolidation of its bank subsidiary companies on April 1, with the merging of LaSalle Bank FSB into LaSalle Bank National Association.With $44 billion in combined assets, LaSalle is the second largest bank in the Chicago area. The successor subsidiary will operate under the name LaSalle Bank.

According to FDIC data from June 30, 1999, Bank One Corp. had a 19.6% deposit market share in Cook County, Ill. (approximately $23.6 billion of deposits) which includes Chicago and its surrounding areas. Together, LaSalle Bank NA and LaSalle Bank FSB had 18.1% of market share in the county, or $21.8 billion of deposits.

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