A Changing Landscape on Wall Street
I find it unbelievable that Bank of America is buying Merrill Lynch for a 70% premium ($29/share). If you remember, earlier in the year they also picked up troubled mortgage lender Countrywide for a premium.
It’s amazing they would pass up a deal to buy Lehman Brothers which likely could of been had for a deep discount. Do you think that government played a role behind the scenes? Just how bad are Lehman’s books that nobody wants to but them?
Are Customer Complaints A Worthy Measure Of How Good a Bank Is?
I was just reading an article over at MarketWatch about the best and worst banks in the US based on customer complaint data. The article doesn’t really dig deeply into any of the data provided. It just provides an overview of total complaints - it’s not broken down by division or in any other meaningful way.
It’s quite obvious that larger institutions receive more complaints than smaller institutions. A better measure of the complaints might be - 1 complaint/1000 customers. At least this ratio would give some perspective.
Here’s the data:
10 national banks with largest number of complaints in 2007
| Bank | Number of complaints | % of total |
| Bank of America | 7,230 | 25.5 |
| J.P. Morgan Chase | 4,890 | 17.3 |
| Citigroup | 3,742 | 13.2 |
| Wells Fargo | 2,695 | 9.5 |
| HSBC North America | 1,963 | 6.9 |
| Wachovia | 1,265 | 4.5 |
| U.S. Bancorp | 1,027 | 3.6 |
| National City | 586 | 2.1 |
| The Royal Bank of Scotland Group | 537 | 1.9 |
| Key Corp | 343 | 1.2 |
| Total Top 10 complaints | 24,278 | 85.7 |
| Total complaints | 28,316 | 100 |
I’m a customer at Bank Of America and have always received great service from them. On several occasions I have called them and always received prompt service and accurate answers. When I’ve needed changes to my account, they have been completed accurately and in a timely manner. I have no complaints. My personal list of best banks has Bank of America at the top of it.
Would the above data influence you to do business with one bank over another? Based on your experience, are these numbers right?
Disdain For The Federal Reserve Interest Rate Cuts
How can so many people be excited about the latest fed cut? You know, the one that lowered the federal funds rate 0.75 percent? Sure, this helps banks borrow money at a cheaper rate. It allows banks, if they choose, to pass on the savings in the form of lower interest loans. But it does nothing for me, the person trying to save money for a home.
While my money sits in a high-yield savings account, the interest I make on it keeps going down. If this trend continues, I’m not sure the account will qualify as so-called “high yield” if there’s another rate cut. Everywhere I turn for news, I read that people are worried about inflation–which, to me, seems to be a legitimate worry. The cost of gas, utilities and food continues to rise — there’s no doubt about that. And in turn people are reeling in their discretionary spending and focusing on putting gas in their cars and food on their tables. Yet the Fed continues to cut rates and increase the money supply.
I understand what the Fed is trying to achieve by lowering the federal funds rate, but I don’t necessarily agree with it. These actions seem to encourage companies to continue the risky behavior that got them in this mess in the first place. I believe it sends an entirely wrong message: “Go ahead and do what you want — we’ll bail you out again.”
I’m most peeved that the government seems to have turned their backs on those that have been responsible with their money. Why should I have to pay for the foolish decisions made by others? I think the economic landscape will get a lot worse before it gets better. My guess is that the credit card industry is next in line for problems, i.e. more people will begin using credit cards to make monthly payments just to keep their heads above water for a little while longer.
ING Lowers Orange Savings Account Interest Rate Again
Once again, ING has lowered the interest rate if its Orange Savings Account. The rate has changed to 3.10% APY. This is a 0.3% reduction from the previous 3.40% APY. Though it seems unlikely, the interest rate for the Orange Savings account could move lower if the fed decides to reduce the benchmark rate at their March 18th meeting.
Deposit Checks Electronically From The Comfort Of Your Home
Imagine scanning checks at home and depositing in your bank account without leaving home. How cool would that be? Well, apparently it’s not too far off. According to an article that I found on the New York Times Web site, banks may allow you to scan checks at home and deposit them in your account electronically.
Soon you will be able to deposit checks by scanning them at home and sending them electronically to your bank. No need to visit a branch or even an ATM.
This technology has been used by businesses for a few years. However, concerns of fraud have slowed its release to the public, but companies say they are close to having technologies that can detect changes to a digital document. I, for one, look forward to using an account feature like this. Driving to a bank to deposit a check is not high on my list of fun things to do. Plus - not having to drive to a bank will save me gas and not having to use an envelope or deposit slip will save paper. Both pluses in my book.
How about you - would you use a service like this if your bank offered it?
ING Direct Lowers Interest Rate After Surprise Fed Move
Following yesterday’s interest rate reduction by the Fed, ING Direct has lowered the interest rate on their Orange Savings Account from 4.1% to 3.65%.
Other banks will likely to do the same.
My Thoughts About The ING Direct Orange Savings Account
Late last month my wife and I signed up for a joint ING Direct Orange Savings Account. We had heard many good things about ING but had never done any banking with them. Many things swayed us toward the ING Direct account over others, but the number one factor was the praise their customer service got. So what do we think of them so far?
1. Account Setup
We signed up for our Orange Savings Account through the ING Direct we site. The process was very quick and easy. To get going with the account we set up a link between it and our existing checking account. Finally, we verified two small deposits and we were in business.
2. Account Interface
Logging into the Orange Savings Account is simple - it involves answering some security questions and entering your PIN. Once logged in, getting around the user interface is very easy. Tasks like setting up an automatic deposit and making transfers back to your linked account are clear and easy to use. Because I like details, I really liked that you can click on your account balance and see how much interest your money has earned for the month.
3. Interest
When we signed up for our account the APY was 4.5%. About one week after we made our first transfer the APY dropped to 4.1%. While the interest rate is important to us, we’re not going to chase rates to get the highest one possible.
4. Customer Service
After signing up for our account, we had some issues getting one of our logins working ( the joint account has two separate logins ). We grabbed the phone and gave ING a call. The representative we spoke with was very polite and courteous. He answered our questions quickly and accurately. I was impressed and I have to say - all the reviews I read were spot on. The customer service is excellent!
I have some referrals links if any readers want to sign up for an ING Direct Orange Savings account. Just leave a comment and I’ll send you a link - or - you can send me an email at “justsqueakingby ( at ) gmail.com. By using the referral link you’ll get $25 deposited into your account if you make an initial deposit of $250, and I’ll receive $10 referral bonus.
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About
Just Squeaking By is a blog about my personal finances and my quest to get them in order. Read more about Just Squeaking By
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