Winter weather insurance claims hit £650m
Mar 10, 2010 Make Money Online
Insurers paid out £650m from 335,000 claims made as a result of damage caused by the wintry weather in the UK.
The biggest chunk of the payout was made to motorists who damaged vehicles on the slippery roads, the Association of British Insurers (ABI) said.
January 2010 was the eighth coldest on record for the UK – the worst since 1987.
The bad weather hit businesses and consumers with sectors including retail and the housing market suffering.
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Tags: ABI, Association of British Insurers, Business, housing market, insurance, insurer, Vehicles
Chile’s earthquake ‘may cost insurers up to $7bn’
Mar 10, 2010 Make Money Online
The earthquake in Chile may cost the global insurance industry as much as $7bn (£4.7bn), Swiss Re has estimated.
The company, the world’s second-largest reinsurer, said the impact on the sector would between $4bn and $7bn.
Swiss Re said its own losses from last month’s 8.8 magnitude earthquake would total about $500m.
Chile’s outgoing government has said it will take the country up to four years to recover, but economists say Chile is well placed to do this.
Another reinsurance company, Germany’s Munich Re, has also said how much it estimates it will have to pay out as a result of the Chilean earthquake – $543m.
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Tags: Earthquake, Economics, insurance, insurer, Reinsurance companies
Barron’s picks 10 stocks as good dividend bets
Nov 23, 2009 Make Money Online
Barron’s highlighted ten companies that it sees as good bets for investments with big dividends that look safe for the long term, including Banco Santander (SAN.MC) at the top of its list and Verizon Communications (VZ.N).
Barron’s Nov 23 edition cited Banco Santander’s relative financial strength in a troubled industry as well as its geographic diversity and a 10-year return rate of 9.2 percent, annualized through Oct 30 2009.
It said its No. 2 pick Chevron (CVX.N) offers a dollar hedge, exposure to oil and gas and a 8.8 percent 10-year return on the same basis as the first company on the list.
The paper’s No. 3 is chip market leader Intel Corp (INTC.O), which recently raised its dividend. Barron’s said “there is probably more of that to come” but noted that its 10-year return rate was a negative 5.6 percent. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: AAPL.O, Abbott Labs, ABT.N, ADR, Apple Inc's, AT&T inc, Banco Santander, Barron, Chevron, Coca-Cola, CVX.N, Dividend Stock, Emerson Electric, EMR.N, Healthcare, healthcare product, insurance, INT.O, Intel Corp, iPhone, JNJ.N, Johnson & Johnson, KO.N, LMT.N, Lockheed Martin, McDonald's, McDonald's Corp, Merck, Microsoft, MRK.N, MSFT.O, Novartis, NOVN.VX, PEP.N, PepsiCo, PG.N, Procter & Gamble, quintessential, Retirement Fund, SAN.MC, Stock Market, TEF.MC, TEF.N, Telefonica's, Tylenol and Band Aid, United Technologies Corp, UTX.N, Verizon Communications, VOD.L, Vodafone Group Plc, VZ.N, Wal-Mart, WMT.N
Citigroup says new rules may hit securitization
Nov 7, 2009 Make Money Online
Citigroup Inc (C.N) said on Friday that new accounting rules for securitization trusts may prevent the bank from funding some of its assets with a top debt rating.
The rules could lift Citigroup’s borrowing costs, which have already risen since 2007 amid the financial crisis.
Citigroup packages billions of dollars of assets into bonds and sells them to investors every year. It uses funding vehicles to do so.
These vehicles were often not included in the company’s main balance sheet, but new accounting rules will force them to be consolidated with the rest of Citigroup’s assets and liabilities. The result should be an addition of about $154 billion to Citigroup’s assets, based on Sept. 30 figures, the bank said on Friday.
If the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp does not change the rules regarding how it treats debt from these vehicles when a bank collapses, rating agencies may downgrade the vehicles’ debt. And the vehicles may not be able to issue the top-rated triple-A securities they tend to rely on, Citigroup said in its quarterly filing with regulators on Friday.
In fact, new debt could potentially be rated no higher than Citigroup’s ratings, the bank said. That would likely lift the bank’s borrowing costs when funding, for example, new credit card loans. (Reporting by Dan Wilchins; editing by Andre Grenon)
Tags: bank, C.N, Citigroup, Citigroup Inc, Credit Card, debt, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp, funding, insurance, loan
AIG posts second straight profit
Nov 7, 2009 Make Money Online
By Lilla Zuill
AIG, the giant insurer bailed out by the U.S. government, posted its second straight quarterly profit, helped by recovery in the value of its investments, but its underlying business remained weak and its shares fell.
“It is clearly still a troubled company,” said CreditSights analyst Rob Haines. “Its operations are clearly weaker than some of its higher quality competitors. AIG used to be one of those companies.”
American International Group Inc (AIG.N) shares, after rallying ahead of the results on Thursday, closed down $3.80, or 9.67 percent, at $35.48 on Friday. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: AIG, AIG Financial Products, AIG.N, American International Group Inc, bank, Business, CreditSight, income, insurance
U.S. closes Home Federal Savings in Detroit
Nov 7, 2009 Make Money Online
Bank regulators closed Home Federal Savings Bank, of Detroit, on Friday, the 117th U.S. bank to fail this year as deteriorating loans continue to take their toll on financial institutions.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp said Home Federal Savings Bank had $14.9 million in assets and $12.8 million in deposits.
Liberty Bank and Trust Co, of New Oreans, agreed to assume all deposits of Home Federal Savings Bank, whose two branches will reopen as branches of Liberty Bank and Trust.
The failure is expected to cost the FDIC deposit insurance fund an estimated $5.4 million, the agency said. Home Federal Savings Bank is the third FDIC-insured bank in Michigan to fail this year.
(Reporting by Charles Abbott)
Tags: bank, Deposit, FDIC, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp, Home Federal Savings Bank, insurance, Liberty Bank and Trust Co
Big California bank fails, has China branches
Nov 7, 2009 Make Money Online
United Commercial Bank, a big San Francisco bank with branches in China, was closed by state regulators on Friday and its banking operations were acquired by East West Bancorp Inc, also active in both nations.
East West said the transaction made it the second-largest independent bank in California. Based in Pasadena, East West has 137 U.S. branches, including offices in New York, Atlanta, Boston and Seattle, and four in China.
United Commercial Bank, with assets of $11.2 billion, was the 120th U.S. bank to fail this year. Regulators closed four other banks on Friday, in Georgia, Michigan, Missouri and Minnesota. Failures already were the highest since 1992.
Banks are struggling to clean up their balance sheets as loans made during the credit boom continue to deteriorate. The FDIC has said the pace of failures will remain elevated through next year.
Last year 25 institutions were closed by regulators, compared to three in all of 2007. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: California Bank, East West Bancorp Inc, FDIC, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp, Gateway bank of St Louis, Home Federal Savings Bank, insurance, Minsheng Banking Corp, Prosperan Bank, UCB-China, UCBH Holdings Inc, United Commercial Bank
Senate health bill costs pegged at $829 billion
Oct 8, 2009 Make Money Online
By Donna Smith and John Whitesides
A U.S. Senate Finance Committee health plan would cost $829 billion and cut the budget deficit by $81 billion over 10 years, nonpartisan budget analysts said on Wednesday in a report that could bolster President Barack Obama’s healthcare reform drive.
The preliminary estimate from the Congressional Budget Office also said the bill would reduce the number of uninsured people in the United States by about 29 million by 2019.
The bill would meet Obama’s push for a healthcare plan that does not increase the budget deficit, according to the CBO. The estimate could ease the way for committee approval of the measure in the next week.
“This is another important step forward for health reform,” White House spokesman Reid Cherlin said. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: CBO, Finance Committee, Health bill, Health plan, Healthcare, insurance, Insurance plan
Three more U.S. banks closed, nearly 100 for year
Oct 3, 2009 Make Money Online
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Three U.S. banks failed on Friday, bringing the total to 98 this year, as regulators continue to shutter financial institutions that are overwhelmed by bad loans and liquidity problems.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp said that Warren Bank in Michigan was closed, with Huntington National Bank of Ohio taking over its deposits. It had $538 million in assets and $501 million in deposits.
Jennings State Bank in Minnesota was also shut down, with Central Bank in that state assuming its deposits. It had $56.3 million in assets and $52.4 million in deposits.
The third bank closed by bank regulators was Southern Colorado National Bank, with Legacy Bank in the state taking over its deposits. It had $39.5 million in assets and $31.9 million in deposits.
All the branches of the institutions will open on Saturday under their new owners and customers can continue to use checks, automated tellers and debit cards to access their funds.
Combined, the three latest failures are expected to cost the FDIC’s insurance fund a total of about $293 million. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: ATM, central bank, Colorado National Bank, debit card, Deposit, FDIC, FDIC's insurance fund, Huntington National Bank, insurance, Jennings State Bank, Legacy Bank, owner, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp, US Banks, Warren Bank
Five banks closed by U.S. regulators
Sep 5, 2009 Make Money Online
Bank regulators closed four Midwestern banks and one in Arizona on Friday, bringing to 89 the number of U.S. banks to fail this year as deteriorating loans continue to take their toll on financial institutions.
The closed banks were Vantus Bank in Sioux City, Iowa, InBank in Oak Forest, Illinois, Platinum Community Bank of Rolling Meadows, Illinois, the First Bank of Kansas City in Missouri and the First State Bank of Flagstaff, Arizona, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp said.
Vantus Bank was the largest of the five institutions to close, with total assets of $458 million and total deposits of about $368 million.
InBank had total assets of $212 million and total deposits of about $199 million while the First State Bank of Flagstaff, Arizona had total assets of $105 million and total deposits of approximately $95 million as of July 24. The First Bank of Kansas City, which has one branch, had total assets of $16 million and total deposits of about $15 million.
The Office of Thrift Supervision said that Platinum Community Bank had total assets of $148 million while the FDIC estimated its assets as $345.6 million as of August 29, 2009. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: bank, FDIC, InBank, insurance, Platinum Community Bank of Rolling Meadows, Stock Market, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp, the First Bank of Kansas City in Missouri, the First State Bank of Flagstaff, US Bank, Vantus Bank
