Greetings,
Bernie Sanders came within 0.5% of taking the Iowa Caucus on Monday after vowing to make life miserable for banks. Bankers are certainly culpable for the excess that created the Financial Crisis, but life for banks these days is already pretty miserable. The six largest US banks generated no growth in combined revenues last year, largely because of energy. Citigroup (C) recorded a +32% increase in non-performing corporate loans in 4Q 2015. Wells Fargo (WFC), America’s largest bank, reported a $100m sequential quarterly increase in net charges. And JPMorgan Chase (JPM) said it will have to increase reserves by $750m this year if oil stays at current prices.
Since 2009, US banks have paid out more than $200 billion in fines, and we’re only now starting to see penalties for dark pool violations. Iowa Caucus winners Hillary Clinton and Ted Cruz have both taken heat for their connection to Goldman Sachs (GS), but even Lloyd Blankfein & Co. settled a $5 billion claim for misleading mortgage investors this month. The US yield curve continues to flatten relentlessly, which should keep a lid on bank profitability. And now, with roughly ¼ of global GDP dealing with negative nominal interest rates, many banks are officially losing ...
/www.benzinga.com/general/education/16/02/6214848/banking-aint-easy-but-its-necessary alt=Banking Ain't Easy But It's Necessary>Full story available on Benzinga.com
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