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MORTGAGES: A HOUSING advocacy group that waged a highly visible campaign against Fleet Financial Group is now training its sights on mortgage giant Fannie Mae. Page 8 INTEREST RATES for 30-year fixed loans have remained below 9% for at least two weeks - longer in some parts of the country. Those low rates, coupled with the coming spring homebuying season, could mean a pickup in activity for lenders, particularly in fixed-rate products. Page 8 WASHINGTON: FRANK NEWMAN, deputy secretary of the Treasury, said the administration may be willing to compromise on how large a stake a financial company can hold in an industrial concern while still qualifying to own a bank. Page 2 FEDERAL RESERVE Board Governor Lawrence B. Lindsey urged Congress to low banks to make equity investments in small, inner-city businesses. Page 2 REGIONAL BANKING: CITICORP and Online Resources and Communications Corp. announced the settlement of a patent infringement suit the bank filed against the technology company in December. Page 7 COMMUNITY BANKING: TWO SPEAKERS at an ABA-Bank Marketing Association convention suggested community bankers would do well to emulate the way McDonald's diversifies its products to satisfy existing customers and win new ones. Page 10 THE SAN DIEGO area's largest community bank is up for sale, but acquisition attempts by its growth-hungry peers have been thwarted. Page 10 INVESTMENT PRODUCTS: FIRST UNION Corp. announced it plans to buy a small Palm Beach-based mutual fund family, in hopes of broadening its appeal to Florida's consumers. Page 12 SMALL BUSINESS: BY COMBINING a local presence with a nationwide reputation, Merrill Lynch is able to win plum assignments from small businesses willing to look beyond their Main Street bank. Page 14 MOST small businesses say their primary bank is not very good at understanding the kind of services they want or the way they want products delivered. Page 15 CREDIT/DEBIT/ATMs: AFTER FIVE consecutive years of double-digit growth in point of sale debit transactions, bankers are asking themselves how to make a good thing even better. Page 16 FLEETMAN INC. has agreed to purchase Gascard Inc., bringing together two fleet management companies serving a total of 8,000 outlets in 46 states. Page 17 TECHNOLOGY: MOVING TO increase its product and service offerings to the mortgage industry, Electronic Data Systems announced it has acquired a developer of home loan origination software. Page 18 FINANCE: SHARES IN the Putnam Trust Co. of upscale Greenwich, Conn., were trading for more than twice book value on takeover speculation. Back page BARNETT BANKS INC. last week announced it would provide investment banking services to its corporate clients under an agreement with Stephens Inc., the Little Rock investment banking firm. Page 22

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