'I Have Watched People Blow Up That Way': The Week's Best Quotes

August 20, 2013 10:18 AM

The most notable quotes from American Banker stories of the previous week. Readers are encouraged to add their own observations in the Comments fields at the bottom of each slide.

(Image: Thinkstock)

On the huge concessions on loan terms that banks have been making as they search for growth:

"It speaks to the insane structure competition. [It] pretty much puts all the cards on the borrowers' side of the table."

Gregory Norwood, chief financial officer of First Niagara Financial Group (FNFG)

On how regulatory uncertainty and volatility in the banking industry caused financial-technology startup PerkStreet to shut down:

"The environment of the last several years just made it very, very hard to build a company."

Dan O'Malley, PerkStreet chief executive

(Image: Thinkstock)

On why Cullen/Frost Bankers (CFR), which agreed to buy WNB Bancshares, has little interest in nonbanks:

"We are not going to go buy a bunch of loans or go out and get in the national leasing business or something crazy like that. I have watched a lot of people blow up that way, and I don't believe in it."

Dick Evans, CEO of Cullen/Frost

On giving the Federal Reserve Board a week to decide if it will revise its rule limiting debit card fees or appeal his ruling that the cap is too high:

"They've had their briefings. They know the state of play. It's time to make a decision."

Richard Leon, U.S. District Judge for the District of Columbia

(Image: Thinkstock)

On the mixed signals the Fed is sending over whether it plans to revise the interchange cap:

"It's time for the governors [of the Fed] to decide whether they should be adhering to public law, or bowing to the will of the banks."

Mallory Duncan, general counsel at the National Retail Federation

(Image: Thinkstock)

On the effect of a recent court ruling that gives retailers the choice of routing each signature debit transaction over multiple card networks:

"There is a slippery-slope scenario where interchange fees for the community banks slide."

Eric Grover, a payments industry consultant

(Image: Thinkstock)

On why it took two years for Naugatuck Savings Bank to decide on its new name, Ion Bank:

"You would not believe how hard it is to come up with a name."

Chuck Boulier, president and chief executive of Naugatuck Savings Bank

Related Article: Picking a New Bank Name Is Maddening

Denying that Anchor BanCorp's (ABCW) bankruptcy filing was caused by Associated Banc-Corp's decision to deny Anchor an extension of a line of credit:

"It appears to us that Anchor filed bankruptcy to avoid honoring its commitments to its lenders and the U.S. taxpayers under [the Troubled Asset Relief Program.]"

Jennifer Kaminski, an Associated spokeswoman

(Image: Thinkstock)

On a new proposal for unwinding Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac under which the companies would not add new loans, but the government would continue to insure their existing ones:

"It's like a bad bank without the good bank structure."

Mark Calabria, director of financial regulation studies at the Cato Institute

(Image: Thinkstock)

On a new method proposed by the Federal Housing Administration's for calculating lenders' liability for poorly underwritten loans:

"If this goes through, it means it will be a lot more expensive to be an FHA lender."

Phillip Schulman, a partner at the law firm of K&L Gates

(Image: Thinkstock)

On why banks looking for fresh ideas are funding and mentoring startups:

"The banking world is on the edge of a new era, and we think many services and products the banking industry is selling to customers will be completely different in a short time."

Nir Inbar, business development manager in the high tech sector of the commercial banking division at Bank Leumi

On why banks should expect more investigations from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau before the Supreme Court rules on the disparate impact theory, which makes it possible to charge banks with bias even if they did not intend to discriminate:

"I think the regulators would like to take advantage of this as much as they can before the Supreme Court rules."

Michael Mierzewski, a partner at Arnold & Porter

(Image: Thinkstock)