Writer: Tom Bengtson

The Iowa Bankers Association and the Independent Community Bankers of Minnesota launched new web sites in January. [Continue]

The South Dakota Bankers Association has pulled together information from its member banks to provide a snapshot of the impact the banking industry has on the quality of life in South Dakota. [Continue]

The owners of a bank in Illinois are asking for a full court review of a Jan. 15 Tax Court decision which could affect the way thousands of people who own shares in subchapter S banks calculate their income taxes. [Continue]

      On Feb. 27, the FDIC announced it is proposing a 20-basis-point special assessment on deposits, payable this September. For a bank with $100 million in deposits on June 30, the assessment means an additional $200,000 expense. For perspective, consider that in the FDIC’s Kansas City Region, there are 137 banks with about … Read more

      Two government moves last September sent the economy into a tailspin.       The first move was placing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac into conservatorship on Sept. 7. The government pumped equity into the deteriorating GSEs by purchasing senior preferred shares, coming ahead of existing preferred and common shareholders. This was a particularly stinging blow to the … Read more

Economists speaking on a panel presented by the University of Minnesota disagree in their predictions about when the recession will end. [Continue]

Wal-Mart reported strong sales for January while other retailers reported lower sales than a year ago. Same-store sales were up by 2.1 percent over January 2008, and total sales increased nearly 2 percent to $27.74 billion. [Continue]

Approximately 200 bankers visited legislators in St. Paul, Minn., on Feb. 10, expressing concern about pending legislation addressing mortgage foreclosures. [Continue]

Carl Pohlad, one of Minnesota’s leading people in business, died Jan. 5 at the age of 93. Best known as owner of the Minnesota Twins Major League Baseball team, readers of NorthWestern Financial Review know him for his extensive interests in the banking business. [Continue]

      Regulators have been overly concerned about a concentration of commercial real estate loans at community banks for the past three years or so. They become particularly concerned when they see the portfolio for “other real estate owned” grow beyond historical norms. Because of the very powerful real estate lobby – representing hundreds … Read more