Part of Wachovia will remain independent -- including its massive brokerage business which ballooned after it purchased AG Edwards in 2007, as well as its Evergreen investment management division.
Soon, we will all be Chase or Citibank customers.
"Citigroup to buy Wachovia banking assets" [CNN] (Thanks to humphrmi!)
(Photo: hyku)
I wonder if this means I'll have to memorize another reassigned account number? mine got arbitrarily changed when Wachovia bought my original bank which was Southtrust I think...
]]>Makes me wonder if banks are really any better at managing my money than my mattress would be.
]]>Another thought... I find it pretty scary that the institutions that I grew up putting my faith and money into really aren't any better at managing my money than my mattress would have been.
]]>"NationsBank, I wish I could quit you."
]]>@rekoil: nice, +1
]]>City, BOA, and Chase are the big 3 and some of the only ones that seem capable of rolling with this crisis. they will survive and create a new paradigm withing the US banking world
]]>@captadam: Wachovia wasn't too big to fail. It just escaped failure because its banking division was very desirable. Under a different situation, it would have probably been allowed to fail. CITI + WB, however, I don't know about that.
]]>BTW, what does this mean if you have a ultra crappy private student loan from Wachovia?
]]>I have yet to find a bank that has locations everywhere I travel, (Louisiana especially, because of their different legal system) but my local credit union has 3,500 shared branches where I can make free withdrawals, deposits, loan payments, get money orders, etc, etc.
]]>@12-Inch Idongivafuck Sandwich: Here here to that. I've had no complaints with those guys and wound up cycling back to them after idiotically putting my faith that FSG Bank could intelligently and decently service their customer base.
]]>I'm starting to like credit unions more and more.
]]>Capital One's mortgage portfolio is fairly stable- it's mostly traditional, locally originated fixed term fixed interest mortgages. They closed their wholesale/brokered Alt-A lending arm (inherited from North Fork) last year.
Their credit card portfolio also seems strong- they've long had strict standards for issuing CCs and are well known for having some of the lowest credit limits in the industry. But if things keep getting worse, look at the credit card lending to start biting them in the ass- they used to give a lot of subprime borrowers $1000 limits and that can add up.
Boosting their retail banking presence is still a priority so look at them to pick up failing banks on the cheap. Just in the last five years they've picked up Hibernia, North Fork and Superior savings and created a significant presence in NY, NJ, CT, TX and LA.
]]>Not me! My credit union is doing better than ever!
]]>Speaking of, this might just be the bump I need to move my money to my university's credit union...
]]>@SniDa: My wife and I opened an account with them (in addition to our credit union accounts) and we've had no problems at all. Actually, they've been rather helpful, and even moved the due date of her car loan to match her pay schedule.
]]>BofA was evil (and still is).
BB&T was decent, but not that great.
WaMu gave me some of the worst service overall, but not quite as bad as BofA.
I'm tempted to cut a hole in my mattress, if I had enough money to make it worth cutting up a perfectly good mattress.
]]>however, let me point to an alarming trend among some community banks & that is positioning your institution to be purchased by larger institutions. there are two "smaller" banks in my state - people's united & webster bank - that have done just that & now they're stuck between a rock & a hard place. banks aren't paying a premium for other banks in this market & positioning yourself to be bought often involves maximizing short-term profits at the expense of long-term sustainability (you can thank insider enrichment for that).
what results are smaller banks that arguably have greater exposure to risk in this marketplace. how do you know if your institution is exposed? some telltale signs are aggressive expansion (new branches in new markets as well as purchasing sprees of other banks, brokerage houses, operational units) &/or massive layoffs. executive upheavals can also signal issues - especially if you see a flight of long-time middle & upper-level management. this often signals a major change.
you're money is still safe at these institutions (up to insurance limits), but be careful if you are an investor or have more than the maximums on deposit.
]]>Because when you've lived in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New york, and Virigina in the last five years -- and when your family is in Connecticut, Vermont, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island, and your significant other's family is in North Carolina -- sometimes it's really, really worth it to have access to your bank (ATMs and branches) in more than one town.
That said, if I should ever look to own property, I don't think I'd be wanting a mortgage with my current bank. But still -- I've genuinely benefited from having a bank that I can find everywhere I am. And I may not be the rule but I'm not that much of an exception, either.
]]>@feralparakeet:
I haven't heard of Regions until you mentioned it (not in my region), so I did a quick Google search and find that they ranked worst in customer service by JD Power ([www.bizjournals.com]).
Regions changed the way they operate after they merged with AMSouth...they went all draconian. It's bad when 2 branch managers look at you with a straight face and tell you that instead of moving forward, they moved backwards by 20 years. Which, is why I changed to WaMu...so watch out with Regions.
@Ben Popken: yea right! when you can remove the concept of greed from the human race, it might happen.
]]>How much can I get when I default on my Citibank credit card?
As if I don't know that answer!
@Coles_Law: If this article is true (Smaller Banks Thrive Out of the Fray of Crisis) then maybe this will make the local banks and credit unions bigger.
]]>Considering "WalkAllOverYa"'s reputation for bad service, that's a scary thought.
]]>I'll be moving my checking back over to Regions for sure, but I don't know about my mortgage. I have a real problem with Citi getting my interest when they won't give me service anywhere near the level that Wachovia did.
]]>I just hope by the end of this mess we aren't left with three banks that are "too big to fail".
]]>Well.. Guess thats a wrap for Wachovia..
]]>@Morac: I'm guessing that link will be broken. You will now need to fund the brokerage account the good ol' way - checks and wires!
]]>Well, I'd rather this than a massive bank run leading to a generous helping of FAIL.
]]>