Maybe the continuing spat between the banking and credit union industries should be settled by a talent contest.
Last month the Independent Community Bankers of America unveiled its new name with a theme song, "ICBA." The tune, sung to the beat of the 1970s disco classic "YMCA," features such stirring lyrics as:
No bank does it all by itself.
We said, "Bankers,
Put your pride on the shelf."
... We're all a part of the ICBA.
Not to be outdone, credit unions have a tune of their own. Jim Blaine, the president of $6 billion-asset State Employees Credit Union in Raleigh, N.C., composed a couple of songs spoofing the various legal battles between banks and credit unions.
The lyrics were published in the March 24 edition of The Credit Union Journal. In one song, Mr. Blaine updates Buddy Holly's "That'll Be the Day," changing the title to "Their Torts Are Too Tight (Why Bankers Never Smile)." A verse:
Well, that'll be the day, when you lose your torts.
Yeah, that'll be the day, when we kick your shorts.
Yeah, you say you're gonna win, but you know it's a lie.
'Cause that'll be the day-ay-ay when we die.
The second song is "Any Pig Can Sue," sung to the tune of Holly's "Peggy Sue."
In an interview, Mr. Blaine said he was unaware of the ICBA's musical musings and had written his songs only in jest.
"It's meant to be a humorous dig at our rivals," he said. "The constant barrage of lawsuits is a concern of the credit union movement. We view it as harassment, and it is taking us away from our business."
As for the talent show idea, Mr. Blaine, who says he is tone-deaf, declined. "If we had to sing, I am afraid we'd lose," he said. -- Louis Whiteman
A Louisiana thrift company said last week that its annual earnings report will be delayed because its chief operating officer has resigned.
Algiers Bancorp in New Orleans notified the Securities and Exchange Commission in a filing last week that it would not submit its form 10-K on time. Companies have 90 days after their fiscal year ends to file the document, meaning Algiers had to have the 10-K in by March 31.
Algiers, the parent of $47 million-asset Algiers Homestead Association, blamed the delay on the Feb. 22 resignation of Dennis J. McCluer.
"Over the past three years ... Mr. McCluer has had primary responsibility for preparation of all of the registrant's public filings," Algiers told the SEC.
This is not the first time Algiers has been late with a filing. Its third-quarter earnings statement was delayed because Mr. McCluer was in the hospital, according to another SEC filing. And since 1997, three other earnings reports were late because of software problems, concern over accounting requirements, or the company's assertion that it needed more time to understand what it had to file.In its three years as a public company, Algiers has never filed its 10-K on time.
Algiers' chief financial officer did not return calls seeking comment. -- Louis Whiteman
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A politician-turned-bank-robber has pleaded guilty to charges that he robbed $48,000 from Community National Bank in Springboro, Ohio, in June.
Robert Jones, former mayor of Williamstown, Ky., was sentenced to seven years in prison. He told an Ohio judge last week that he had robbed the $92 million-asset bank because he was on the brink of financial ruin.
Mr. Jones was caught after an attempted robbery of a bank in Kettering, Ohio, in November. A town resident identified him on a security tape that the bank released to television stations.
He still faces charges in that incident.
This is not Mr. Jones' first brush with the law. He lost his job as mayor in 1997 and was sentenced to two years' probation after admitting he had misused city funds for personal gain. -- Lauru Pavlenko Lutton
