Inside these posts: Banks

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Illinois ranked No. 8 in bank robberies last year

The state of Illinois might be notorious for its financial troubles, but at least it barely cracked the Top 10 of states with the most bank robberies in 2010, according to newly released statistics from the FBI. Get the full story »

Wells Fargo cuts 1,900 jobs as refinancings slow

Wells Fargo & Co said on Thursday it is shedding about 1,900 jobs, or less than 1 percent of its total workforce, as mortgage refinancings slow. Get the full story »

Troubled Parkway Bank ordered to raise capital

A Parkway Bank at 4800 N. Harlem in Chicago. (Alex Garcia/Chicago Tribune)

Another midsized bank in the Chicago area is showing serious signs of wear and tear.

Parkway Bank & Trust Co., a $2.59 billion-asset lender based in Harwood Heights, has been ordered by state and federal regulators to raise its capital levels. Get the full story »

Harris Bank parent aims for five-fold profit jump

Bank of Montreal aims to more than quintuple annual earnings from its U.S. operations, following the $4.1 billion acquisition of U.S. lender Marshall & Ilsley. Get the full story »

FDIC sues ex-WaMu execs, wives over bank’s failure

A Washington Mutual branch at 2053 N. Clybourn that closed in 2008. (Candice C. Cusic/Chicago Tribune)

A U.S. government regulator sued Kerry Killinger and two other Washington Mutual Bank executives accused of pioneering reckless home loans that led to biggest bank failure in U.S. history.

The three “gambled billions of dollars of WaMu’s money” by rewarding employees and themselves for pushing risky, low-teaser rates loans while ignoring warnings about the housing bubble, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp said in its lawsuit. Get the full story »

Fed report: No wrongful foreclosures by banks

From The Huffington Post | A months-long investigation into abusive mortgage practices by the Federal Reserve found no wrongful foreclosures, members of the Fed’s Consumer Advisory Council said Thursday.

First Midwest plans downtown facility

First Midwest Bank, which has grown into one of the area’s biggest banks without a presence in downtown Chicago, confirmed that it plans to set up shop for the first time in the city’s central business district.

The bank told the Tribune that it plans to open an office in a LaSalle Street building in the Loop in early April. It’s not divulging the address until a lease for the property, which has 3,500 to 4,000 square feet, is signed, which should occur “shortly,” a bank spokesman said. The office will handle commercial banking, cash management and trust services, he said. Get the full story »

Urban Partnership Bank makes real estate hire

Urban Partnership Bank, the successor to failed ShoreBank, said Levoi Brown, 33, formerly an asset management director with General Electric Real Estate, has joined the South Side bank as the new director of commercial real estate.

Brown will be responsible for Urban’s commercial and multi-family real estate portfolio in Chicago, Cleveland, and Detroit. He reports to Urban Chief Executive William Farrow. Get the full story »

Regulators want $2.5 billion from bank execs

U.S. banking regulators have authorized lawsuits against 109 bank officials so far as they seek to recover at least $2.5 billion in losses connected to recent bank failures.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp said on Tuesday the suits target bank directors and officers for “either gross or simple negligence.” It is seeking to recoup money for its deposit insurance fund, which backs customer accounts. Get the full story »

Northern Trust sets up gay, lesbian practice

Chicago-based Northern Trust said Tuesday it has formalized a practice that provides financial services to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community.

Over the years, Northern has supported various LGBT initiatives, including the building campaign for the Center on Halsted, a LGBT community center. It is a national sponsor of Lambda Legal, a national group focused on legal issues for LGBT people. Northern also began offering domestic partnership benefits to workers more than 13 years ago.

John McGowan has been named Northern’s national practice leader. He previously served as a senior relationship manager in Northern Trust’s wealth management group, which specializes on ultra high-net worth families and their family offices. Get the full story »

ShoreBank successor to close two Chicago branches

Urban Partnership Bank, the successor to failed ShoreBank, is telling customers that on March 17 it will close its branches at 4659 S. Cottage Grove in the Kenwood neighborhood of Chicago and at 3401 S. King Drive in the Bronzeville area of the city.

“With current market conditions making expansion less expensive and real estate more available, we have decided to explore new retail branch locations to better serve our customers,” Urban Partnership said in a letter to customers obtained by the Chicago Tribune.

Urban Partnership said in the letter that it’s “actively seeking new locations” in Chicago and in Cleveland, where it is also closing a branch, “that will be accessible with the latest technologies” and more convenient. Get the full story »

New Lenox switches from Harris Bank to new one

New Lenox village government has a new banker.

The Village Board this week approved an ordinance switching its account from Harris Bank to Old Plank Trail Community Bank.

The village has had its banking services handled by the former New Lenox State Bank, now Harris, since the village incorporated in 1946. But after Harris recently began charging fees, Finance Director Kim Auchstetter recommended considering a change.

BMO shares slide deeper following M&I takeover

Shares of Bank of Montreal extended their slide on Monday, falling 2.2 percent as analysts chopped their share-price targets following the bank’s $4.1 billion deal to purchase Wisconsin lender Marshall & Ilsley Corp. Get the full story »

‘Robin Hood’ banker gets 63 months for fraud

First Security Trust & Savings Bank loan officer Jeffrey Gonsiewski, pleaded guilty in August to one count of federal bank fraud, was sentenced to 63 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Elaine Bucklo on Tuesday.

The U.S. Government last summer had accused the 56-year-old high school graduate of changing loan terms or arranging loans to be made in a scheme that ultimately caused the Elmwood Park-based lender, part of the Wirtz family empire, to lose more than $5.5 million. Get the full story »

ShoreBank successor makes two hires

The successor to failed ShoreBank has added a new director and a new personnel executive.

Urban Partnership Bank of Chicago has tapped Martin Eakes, chief executive of the Center for Responsible Lending, a financial watchdog group based in Durham, N.C., for its board of directors pending regulatory approval.

“Martin has a deep understanding of the unmet financial services needs of the bank’s underserved urban communities and has strong ties to residents, entrepreneurs, and leaders of community organizations,” said William Farrow, CEO of Urban Partnership Bank.
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