Jeanine Skowronski

Receiving Wide Coverage ...Unveiled: The Federal Reserve proposed stricter liquidity rules for the biggest U.S. banks on Thursday. (American Banker's Donna Borak breaks down the proposal's specifics here.) The Journal notes the proposed rules, which will be open for public comment for 90 days and would go into full effect in 2017, are "unlikely to cause major changes at U.S. banks, which have largely improved their funding positions since the 2008 financial crisis." But the Times suggests the liquidity rule "could dent the profits of banks, particularly Wall Street firms that rely on huge amounts of short-term market borrowing" and also warns that additional measures to reduce risk at the big banks should be expected. The FT notes "at times, the U.S. has been tougher on standards than regulators in Europe."

Breaking News This Morning ...Earnings: Goldman Sachs, BB&T, Fifth Third, Huntington

Breaking News This Morning ...B of A Earnings: Bank of America continued the mixed bag of big bank earnings this morning, reporting an increase in third-quarter profit due to improved credit quality, which offset weak fixed income and a decline in mortgage revenue. Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Financial Times

Breaking News This Morning ...Citi Earnings: Citigroup's third-quarter earnings are out and the quick take is that results are disappointing, thanks to a slump in bond trading and a decline in mortgage revenue. "Third-quarter net income, adjusted for certain items, slipped to $3.26 billion, or $1.02 per share, from $3.27 billion, or $1.06 per share a year earlier," Reuters summarizes. "We performed relatively well in this challenging, uneven macro environment," CEO Michael Corbat said in a prepared statement. Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, New York Times

Lifetime Achievement Award recipient Ellen Alemany outlined how bankers can restore customer confidence in the rapidly evolving industry.

The Fed's Janet Yellen and optimism about the future were hot topics at American Banker's Women in Banking awards dinner on Thursday.

'Lady, you got a lot going on,' a customs agent recently told American Banker's Most Powerful Woman in Finance, upon learning she was an American banker working from JPMorgan Chase.

Janet Yellen shouldn't have needed anyone's help to be nominated to lead the Fed. Her tortuous path underscores the importance of rallying around qualified women candidates for industry leadership positions.

Receiving Wide Coverage ...Citi Fined: Citigroup has agreed to pay a Massachusetts regulator $30 million for allowing an analyst to share unpublished research about Apple with a handful of hedge funds, including SAC Capital. The Journal calls the case "a vivid example of a problem many critics say isn't going away: sloppy controls over the market-sensitive information flowing between analysts and investors." Dealbook suggests the incident says something about SAC Capital, which was indicted on insider trading charges back in July. "The latest details … illuminate the hedge fund's relentless pursuit of an edge in stock trading," the article notes. Charges have yet to be filed against any of the hedge funds that received the heads up, but enforcement actions are apparently under consideration. Anonymice tell the Journal that the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority is also investigating Citi over the matter. The bank, which did not admit or deny breaking the law as part of the consent order, tells the FT it is "pleased to have this matter resolved" and that it takes "regulatory compliance requirements very seriously."

Receiving Wide Coverage ...Black Market Bust and Bitcoin: Federal agents yesterday arrested Ross William Ulbricht, the alleged ringleader of "Silk Road," an online drug market that accepted Bitcoin, confiscating about $3.6 million of the digital currency. The bust could have serious implications for Bitcoin, which has grown in popularity over the last few years, at least in part, to the expectation of anonymity. "The federal investigation that led to Ulbricht's arrest shows that even purchases made with anonymous profiles on an anonymous site are still trackable," one source tells the Washington Post. Bitcoin prices plummeted yesterday, following news of the raid. But some pundits think the bust could wind up being good for the crypto-currency. "Proponents see Bitcoin primarily as a way to lower the transaction costs associated with legitimate online commerce," writes Bloomberg's Joshua Brustein. "If the market quickly recovers, it bolsters their argument by showing that demand won't drop off once the best way to buy cocaine with Bitcoin disappears." New York magazine's Kevin Roose echoes: "Silk Road's closure … means that the people fighting to legitimize Bitcoin can credibly claim that the old days of the crypto-currency as a tool for vice are over. And after Bitcoin prices stabilize, these people can make a push for a new beginning."

Receiving Wide Coverage ...New York State Regulatory Update: New York attorney general Eric Schneiderman is pushing forward with plans to sue Wells Fargo for allegedly violating the national mortgage settlement, reports the Times' Jessica Silver-Greenberg. American Banker readers will recall Schneiderman warned Wells and Bank of America of a potential lawsuit over alleged servicing settlement violations back in May. "While Wells Fargo is bracing for a lawsuit, Bank of America is poised to announce a series of additional protections that it has adopted after discussions with Mr. Schneiderman's office," Silver-Greenberg writes. The lawsuit against Wells is expected to be filed as early as today. Meanwhile, New York regulator Benjamin Lawsky scored a big win in his crackdown on the payday lending industry yesterday when a federal judge ruled he did have authority to regulate online lenders with Native American ties. "The ruling could encourage other states with interest rate caps to take legal action to ban tribal lenders that charge triple-digit rates in their jurisdictions," the Washington Post notes.

Receiving Wide Coverage ...Shutdown: The government shut down after House Republicans and Senate Democrats failed to reach a funding deal before the midnight deadline. Big picture coverage is here: Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Financial Times, Washington Post

Receiving Wide Coverage ...Shutdown Showdown: News outlets are heavily focused on a looming government shutdown as political tensions resulted in a Congressional stalemate just ahead of tonight's deadline to avert closure of non-essential government offices. The House did pass legislation over the weekend that would keep the government open through mid-December, but it includes provisions that would delay implementation of the Affordable Care Act for one year. Democrats have already indicated they will strip out these measures when the Senate reconvenes today. This will leave GOP leaders with "a stark choice," the Washington Post notes, "approve the simple funding bill the Senate has already passed or permit federal agencies to close." (The Wall Street Journal has put together a roundup of what services could be suspended on Tuesday if no agreement is reached.) A shutdown would set the stage for a battle over the debt ceiling, which must be raised by mid-October or else the U.S. risks defaulting on its debt. Economists "remain fearful of the fallout" from a prolonged government shutdown and potential default. "If the disagreements persist, the reaction in the markets is likely to become much more pronounced as Oct. 17 draws closer," Dealbook reports. More big picture coverage can be found here: Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Financial Times

Receiving Wide Coverage ...All About JPM: Everyone's still talking about JPMorgan Chase's $920 million settlement with U.S. and U.K. regulators over last year's $6 billion "London Whale" trading loss. The main takeaways from JPM's Terrible Thursday? For starters, the bank's "Whale" problems may not be over. The Journal reports that the SEC is continuing a civil investigation of individual employees who are connected to the matter. Bank CEO Jamie "Tempest in a Teapot" Dimon is not expected to be one of them. (Once again, regulators punish the bank, but not its top executives, this Dealbook column notes.) However, both Dimon and the bank certainly remain out of favor with regulators. "The bank is now facing scrutiny from at least seven federal agencies, several state regulators and two foreign nations," the Times reports, with an investigation into the trading debacle by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission presenting "a particularly thorny problem." Dealbook columnist Peter Hennings explains: "The issue [in the CFTC's case] is whether the bank's extensive trading manipulated the derivatives markets in violation of the Commodity Futures Act. That law gives private investors a claim for damages against traders who sought to manipulate the value of futures contracts." So, if the bank were to admit wrongdoing to the CFTC, it would potentially open itself up to investor lawsuits over the trading fiasco. These lawsuits, conversely, are not likely to result from JPM's admission of guilt to the Securities and Exchange Commission that came as part of yesterday's broad settlement. "The candor, largely limited to questions of record-keeping, was contained. JPMorgan never said it misled or deceived anybody," explains the Journal's Jacob Gershman. "Any potential securities class-action would still have to show that JPMorgan made a reckless misstatements that had real financial consequences." Also, in case you missed it, the "London Whale" settlement wasn't the only enforcement action against JPM yesterday. The bank was also fined a total of $389 million by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency over deceptive credit card practices.

Breaking News This Morning ...'Whale' Settlement: JPMorgan Chase has agreed to pay regulators $920 million to settle allegations related to its $6 billion 'London Whale' trading loss. Earlier estimates of the widely expected settlement pegged the penalties to total around $750 million to $800 million, but anony-mice were heralding the higher total to various news outlets late yesterday. The bank did admit wrongdoing related to poor internal controls as part of the settlement. Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Financial Times

BankThink kicks off a new series in conjunction with American Banker Magazine’s annual Most Powerful Women in Banking issue.

Receiving Wide Coverage ...A Glut of (Sort of) JPM News: We say sort of because some of this, you may have heard already. For instance, more regulatory scrutiny is on the way, per JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, but, don't worry, the bank is working on it. "We have been asking our senior people to eliminate products and services that are not essential to serving our customers and are not core to our business," Dimon wrote in an internal memo that many news outlets, including American Banker, got ahold of. Among this forthcoming regulatory scrutiny, the Journal reports, is a separate Commodity Futures Trading Commission probe into whether the bank or its traders manipulated trades during the infamous "London Whale" scandal. (Scan readers will recall the bank is nearing a broader settlement with almost every other regulator in the U.S. and U.K. over the $6 billion trading loss.) Anonymice also tell the Journal "the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Manhattan prosecutors ... continue to gather evidence for what could result in criminal charges," related to the trade. (So, nope, the "Whale" still isn't exactly dead.) And, while we're on the subject of criminal charges, Dealbook reports that Julien Grout, one of the two ex-JPM traders already indicted over the incident, per his lawyer, is simply a scapegoat. "The defense will depict Mr. Grout as a low-level employee who was simply following orders," Dealbook writes. "Or, as Mr. Little [his lawyer] put it, Mr. Grout was a 'junior trading assistant acting under the direct instructions of his managers.'" In non-"Whale"-related news, the Journal reports that JPM has "already refunded credit-card customers" for mis-sold add-ons expected to be part of a (you guessed it) settlement with regulators later this week. The fines associated with this settlement, made payable to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, are estimated to be around $80 million.

Receiving Wide Coverage ...'Whale' Settlement: Anonymice are telling their favorite news outlets that JPMorgan Chase is nearing an about $750 million to $800 million settlement with U.S. and U.K. regulators related to last year's pesky $6 billion "London Whale" trading loss. In a big win for the Securities and Exchange Commission, the civil settlement, which could be announced as early as this week, is expected to include an admission of wrongdoing. This admission, part of the SEC's harder stance on enforcement actions, "could open the bank to additional legal liability from shareholder suits, although securities lawyers said the bar is high to prove the bank intentionally misled investors," the Journal notes. Spokespersons for the bank and regulators, which also include the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Reserve and the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority, have yet to formally comment on the forthcoming settlement. Anonymice are billing the move as part of JPM's efforts to repair its frayed relationships with regulators, calm upheaval at the bank and finally put the trading loss behind it, but the new settlement may not be the last time the bank has to deal with the undead "Whale." "The Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the regulator overseeing the market in which the losses occurred, has balked at joining the broader settlement and plans to fine the bank later this year," unnamed sources tell Dealbook. The settlement also won't mark the end of the megabank's regulatory woes, given all the probes that are still pending. "As a result of these cases, [JPM] said it anticipates $6.8 billion in future legal costs in excess of the money it has already set aside to handle litigation," the Washington Post notes.

Receiving Wide Coverage ...Summers Withdraws: Big news broke over the weekend when Lawrence Summers, one of the two top candidates, took his name out of consideration for the Federal Reserve chairman spot, writing in a letter to President Barack Obama "that any possible confirmation process for me would be acrimonious and would not serve the interest of the Federal Reserve, the Administration or, ultimately, the interests of the nation's ongoing economic recovery." (Full text of Summers' letter can be found here, here and here; President Obama's statement accepting Summers' withdrawal is here.) The development is somewhat surprising, given that, earlier this month, White House insiders were reporting a Summers' nomination was imminent, despite mounting Senate opposition to his chairmanship. The Atlantic attributes Summers' withdrawal to a "small team of Democrats" — namely, Jon Tester of Montana, Sherrod Brown of Ohio, Jeff Merkley of Oregon and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts — who were expected to oppose the nomination, though other news outlets say it was Syria that ultimately did Summers in. "The president's inability to rally Congressional Democrats on Syria persuaded Mr. Summers that his most important audience — the Senate, which must confirm a Fed chairman — probably could not be won over," notes the Times. Global financial markets were cheering on Monday, reports the Journal, largely based off of the assumption that Fed vice chairman Janet Yellen, who is considered "to be more cautious about winding back the Fed's stimulus program," will now get the job. But Yellen's appointment may not be a lock. The President still has options, points out the Washington Post's Neil Irwin, including Donald Kohn, Roger Ferguson, Stan Fischer and Jeremy Stein. (Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner's is also being name-dropped by a few news outlets, though reports have already surfaced that he remains uninterested in the position.) "Now we get to see what direction the president wants to go now that his favored candidate is out of the picture," Irwin concludes. More big picture coverage: Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Financial Times, American Banker

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