GLG News by Banking, Insurance, and Financial Institution Experts: Lawyers (US)

The Lafferty study indicates that forced reductions of bankcard interchange fees in Australia have not significantly harmed issuer or network profits.  This is the exact opposite of what industry representatives had predicted.  If Lafferty is on target, interchange pricing...

Investors, including bankcard issuers, want the Visa IPO to be at least as successful as MasterCard's in '06. Visa's global legal problems, which are especially acute in the US and EU, could burden Visa far into the future. The US credit crunch could hold surprises for Visa, more so if Democrats...

To prevent the mortgage meltdown from spreading to payment cards, Congress will suspend aggressive reforms against bankcard lenders and other government pressure (from the feds and perhaps the DoJ) will help to minimize their risks in the interchange antitrust lawsuits.  Thus what Paulson...

Efforts by the EC and UK to stop cartel price fixing threaten bankcard interchange The threat will worsen if they allow private class actions to enforce antitrust standards.

The glut should stimulate more usage through more efficient burning technology and export to oil importers at a attractive price driving demand up and supply stabilized.  Competitive export of ethanol would globalize the usage of ethanol from the US producers.  Our bread basket can be rej...

Digital Rights Managers including cell phone "locks" invite the bright to attempt to crack past the obstacle.  A quality product and superior service are the best protections possible.  What can a company expect to gain by suing a teenager for being bright and motivated.

The Administration has cut the number of inspectors and slashed the inspection budget.  Small wonder we has such major breaches in food import product safety. The Product Safety Council will take two years to tell us what we already know.  Products should be routinely inspected and tested. ...

Housing has lead the economy of the US into recession and back out on a historical basis. Record numbers of foreclosures and a drop in housing sales indicates that the economy is in a recession and visible unsold supply is growing. This type of downturn will require some incentives to create an atmosphere...

Hedge funds, largely unregulated, do not provide new liquidity to capital markets, but rather a different way to pool investment funds. Investors returns have not significantly out performed other investment vehicles. The lack of regulation leaves a huge gap in potential for abuse. Other means are available...

Visa's has proposed a global corporate restructure and IPO to help distance itself from antitrust risks.  Its recent filings with the SEC explaining its plan is an exceedingly complex, dreary and foreboding document.  It does not inspire confidence.