And you know what? I've heard NOTHING about it going to MORTGAGES once it was freed up!
"2 big banks report 2 big losses; Bank of America, Citigroup also given additional US help" by Ross Kerber, Globe Staff | January 17, 2009
Two of the country's largest banks reported steep fourth-quarter losses yesterday and received billions of dollars more in federal help, underscoring how deeply the credit crisis has hit the once-vaunted institutions.
The reports from Citigroup Inc. and Bank of America Corp. capped a dramatic week for the banking industry, as Washington continued to inject unprecedented amounts of cash to prop up the sector. A question now is how effective these steps will be in fostering a recovery, as analysts look at bank earnings and forecasts for signs of where the economy is headed.
First, Bank of America Corp. reported a loss of $1.8 billion for the three months ended Dec. 31, driven by rising provisions for loan losses. It also disclosed it would receive another $20 billion in taxpayer money and $118 billion in government loss protections to complete its purchase of Merrill Lynch & Co. It already had received $25 billion from the US Treasury in October.
So YOU are on the HOOK for at least $118 BILLION, taxpayers!
Separately, Citigroup Inc. reported an $8 billion loss for the same three months and outlined plans to break itself into two parts in an effort to regain profitability for its core business and retail lending units. It also finalized terms on a previous agreement under which the government will guarantee some losses in a $301 billion asset pool....
And you picked up ANOTHER $300 BILLION TAB, taxpayers!
Oh, and about that "previous agreement": Bank of America Already Had Second Half of Bailout Guaranteed
Bank of America and Citigroup already were among the first beneficiaries of the government's steps, receiving a combined $70 billion in October and November from the US Treasury in exchange for preferred shares paying a 5 percent dividend. In a note to investors yesterday, Stanford Group, a Washington research firm, wrote that the government's latest investment in Bank of America could set the stage for second rounds of investments at other banks.
And WHAT ABOUT PAYING OFF some MORTGAGES for people, huh?
Stanford also suggested that the infusion was a way to reward Bank of America for the role it played in trying to stabilize the credit markets by buying failing investment bank Merrill Lynch in September and troubled mortgage lender Countrywide Financial Corp. a year ago.
I wish I could get REWARDED for LOSING MONEY!
Problems at both have continued. Yesterday, Bank of America said Merrill Lynch lost $15.31 billion for the quarter because of what the bank called "severe capital markets dislocations," but didn't yet include the loss with its own results. The bank also said its Columbia Management unit, based in Boston, had a net loss of $459 million, mainly due to the $725 million it had to spend supporting certain cash funds and weak stock markets.
Headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., Bank of America is the largest bank in Massachusetts, with $37 billion in deposits, according to the most recent federal statistics. Citigroup, headquartered in New York, is much smaller in Massachusetts with $691 million in deposits here, but had been on a campaign to expand its local branch network before its latest traumas. Both banks have also begun major layoffs....
Oh, the POOR BANKS!! How about the PEOPLE, shit head?
