Mid-size investment advisers anticipate switch to state watch
After the massive financial scandal Bernie Madoff orchestrated and the widespread collapse of U.S. financial system, local investment advisers are not surprised some of them will soon be supervised by...
View ArticleRetailers love, bankers loathe prospect of lower debit card fees
On some nights, delivery drivers and cashiers at Pizza Nola in Lakeview will end the night without having conducted a single transaction in paper currency. It’s a sign of the times, retailers say, and...
View ArticleBusinesses reconsider cash-only status after lowering of debit card fee
Michael Bartlett said Z’otz Café, the coffeehouse he owns on Oak Street, has been robbed four times. But that was still not enough for him to switch from a cash-only business to one that accepts...
View ArticleLenders, consumer advocates fear stricter mortgage rules included in...
In its attempts at financial industry reform, the federal government wants to jump start the private securities market. Local mortgage lenders say their latest efforts will have just the exact opposite...
View ArticleFuture, authority of new consumer agency in doubt
A brand new federal agency tasked with regulating the nation’s consumer financial industry – including everything from debt collection practices to mandatory arbitration clauses in consumer contracts –...
View ArticlePayday lenders say they meet growing need; consumer groups say they feed it
Bob Zeitler says he’s not a loan shark. The president and founder of RKZ Management, a payday lending and alternative financing company with more than a dozen locations in New Orleans and several more...
View ArticleState-Investors sees growth potential in wake of mergers
The question is whether the 117-year-old institution, which relies heavily on real estate loans, can continue to grow in a New Orleans market where consolidations have removed two established banks...
View ArticleSt. Tammany lenders patiently watch construction, real estate numbers for...
When the financial crisis hit, dozens of St. Tammany homeowners found themselves underwater on their homes. Local banks found themselves with no loan demand. The North Shore economy was injured, and...
View ArticleThe Fed is not finished with overdraft fees
Depend on it, hate it or never need it in the first place, overdraft coverage is getting attention in Washington again. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is gathering public feedback until June...
View ArticleCommunity bankers hear M&A knocks at their door
Regulatory changes from the Dodd-Frank Act are putting pressure on local community banks that their CEOs say cost time and money. As a result, they are listening to potential suitors with buyout...
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