Financial Roundup: 3 Big Deals Official, ING Reorganizies, Citi Bosses Lose Out, the Skinny on Fannie Mae
Three big deals done — It’s official. Bank of America has taken over Merrill Lynch, making it the largest bank in the U.S. with assets of $2.7 trillion. Wells Fargo & Co. owns Wachovia Corp. and PNC Financial Services Group has bought Cleveland’s National City Corp. [Source: The Wall Street Journal]
ING jockeys for recovery — Holland’s ING Group NV has split up withs wealth management business with an eye towards a recovery in investments. Split apart are the bank’s retirement services, annuities, insurance and investments. [Source: American Banker]
And no corporate jets, either — Under federal pressure, Citigroup CEO Vikram Pandit and Chairman Win Bischoff are forgoing their 2008 bonusses since the bank got $45 billion from the government. Corporate jet use will also be restricted. [Source: Chicago Tribune]
Adams National merges with W. Va. bank – West Virginia-based Premier Financial Bancorp is buying Abigail Adams National Bancorp based in Washington. The $10.9 million merger will help the D.C. bank survive the financial crisis. [Source: The Washington Post]
The skinny on Fannie Mae – A lengthy magazine article claims that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were not major culprits in the meltdown, but had been under seige for their successes, big profits, hard-driving CEOs and special status as Government Sponsored Enterprises. [Source: Vanity Fair]
Peter Galuszka is a Virginia-based journalist with more than three decades of experience, including 15 years at BusinessWeek, during which he was twice Moscow Bureau Chief and International News Editor in New York.





BNET User Analysis