Today's News

WASHINGTON

Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said he saw little evidence of a credit crunch, but warned the U.S. economy could still be bruised by global financial turmoil. Page 2

MORTGAGES

The president of IndyMac, a mortgage real estate trust, says his company is being unjustifiably tarred by market jitters after another REIT, Criimi Mae, filed for bankruptcy protection. Page 7

INVESTMENT PRODUCTS

Fidelity Investments and American Express Financial Direct are the latest brokerages offering free trades to attract new customers, but they are trolling for very different kinds. Page 11

The trouble two mutual fund firms are having in finding buyers may be a sign that the seller's market is over for money management firms, industry watchers say. Page 12

REGIONAL

What's in a name? Quite a bit, according to small-business owners. In a survey conducted for American Banker by Financial Institutions Consulting, 67% of entrepreneurs said their financial service provider's brand identity was as important to them as the names on consumer products they buy. Page 4

COMMUNITY

Bankers are waiting to find out if President Clinton will follow through on his threats to veto legislation that would provide emergency aid to farmers. Page 13

CORPORATE FINANCE

Bank credit officers urged their peers to adopt stronger risk-management tools. Page 15

CARDS

Providian Financial fired a new salvo in the credit card industry's pricing war: a 7.9% interest rate Visa. Page 16

MARKETS

Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, a Wall Street firm specializing in banks and thrifts, has shelved its plans to go public. Back page

WEEKLY REPORT: INTERNATIONAL

The financial situation in Russia is likely to worsen before it gets better, senior U.S. and foreign bankers predict. Page 21

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