Banking

Older corporate cash management and banking systems were becoming less popular with Deutsche Bank's younger corporate treasurers. An app marketplace is changing that.

As apps shrink the gap between financial firms and their customers, banks are coping with new and growing risks that accompany mobile devices.

The Federal Reserve Board hit Naugatuck Valley with a memorandum of understanding on May 21, the $526 million-asset company said late Friday.

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Liberty Deserved? A number of the comments on AmericanBanker.com and BankThink this week were strikingly sympathetic to digital currency issuer Liberty Reserve, which was indicted for alleged money laundering, and its customers. These readers were outraged that the authorities came down so hard on the Costa Rican outfit after serving megabank HSBC with a mere fine for similar money laundering charges. They were also skeptical of the government's explanations of its stance on virtual currencies and fearful for Bitcoin entrepreneurs and users who feel increasingly threatened by government encroachment. Commenting on American Banker Washington Bureau Chief Rob Blackwell's Q&A with Financial Crimes Enforcement Network Director Jennifer Shasky Calvery, one reader questioned her description of Liberty Reserve as the biggest money laundering operation ever. "Did you ask about her selective memory? HSBC's 'pervasively polluted' culture involved more money than Liberty Reserve, for instance." Another commenter saw ulterior motives in the prosecution: "The action against LR [had] nothing to do with money laundering. It was to undermine the growth of Bitcoin which [the government] considers more of a threat than the much greater money laundering by the likes of HSBC (which has more blood on its hands than a 1,000 LRs)." Our own "Monetary Future" columnist, digital currency expert Jon Matonis, noted that Liberty Reserve has been around since 2001, and wondered why the U.S. waited so long to prosecute the company. "Why are their 'crimes' of providing a neutral value transfer service more egregious than they were before?" But at least one reader found the government's position eminently reasonable, writing, "money transmitters need to identify people they transfer money for, and to report suspicious activity...we will either remain serious about money laundering/terrorist financing issues, or we can revert back to our pre-Sept 11 head-in-the-sand mentality." In his own column, Matonis talked to a venture capital fund dedicated to Bitcoin startups that's hired former Treasury officials as advisors, underscoring the increasing importance of compliance smarts to such businesses.

Could cyberattacks bring down the U.S. financial network? Chuck Hagel thinks it's possible. Shielding the U.S. against the destructive potential of digital threats is among the top priorities for the nation, the Defense Secretary said.

First California Bank in Westlake Village, Calif., and an affiliated prepaid card provider must pay fines of over $1.7 million for how they used a reloadable card product to deliver federal benefits payments, the FDIC said Friday.

Eagle Bancorp (EGBN) in Bethesda, Md., claims that proxy advisory firm ISS made mathematical errors when it urged investors to vote against compensation for CEO Ron Paul and other officers.

The federal agency announced Friday that it was breaking up its complaint database by state and adding money transfer and credit reporting complaints to its already comprehensive look at consumer issues.

Slyce pictures a day when consumers will be able to buy anything depicted in a TV or printed advertisement — or even a product seen in person — by snapping a photo of it with their mobile device.

MasterCard Inc. will stop using Goldman Sachs Group Inc. for asset-management services after discussing the matter with a firm that advises shareholders on proxy votes.

The Michigan company is set to raise up to $100 million if the right acquisition is available. Analysts say in an erratic M&A market, it is better to be ready to raise capital than to raise it and wait.

Benjamin K. Olson, who was deputy assistant director in the CFPB's office of regulations, has joined the Washington office of BuckleySandler LLP as counsel, the law firm said this week.

The pace of expansion decelerated in April as bankers complained about competition for commercial loans and a slackening of consumer loan demand.

Freddie says its new "low-activity" fee will offset the cost of monitoring the loans it buys, but avoiding it could be a challenge for lenders in rural markets.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. has taken enforcement actions against eight banks and freed 12 others from prior orders, according to a series of orders released Friday.

Net interest margins are complex beasts. During the last Fed tightening cycle, the yield curve turned negative and margins narrowed.

A new Facebook app from Citi suggests which concerts people may like based on their profile data.

The threat posed by Google's new Gmail money transmission feature will put the onus on banks to deliver the ultimate person-to-person payments experience, which only they can provide.

Oxford Bank in Michigan has terminated its planned sale to Level One Bancorp due to regulatory delays and an improvement in Oxford's financial condition.