US Finance World

Bank Holding Companies

The Flow of Funds accounts from the Federal Reserve System came out on Thursday. This gives us a chance to look at parts of the financial system that we do not get to look at on a more frequent basis.

In terms of the banking sector, one area of interest at this time is the activity going on in bank holding companies. In terms of assets, bank holding companies, at the end of the third quarter, 2009, are holding $2.8 trillion in assets, up from $1.9 trillion one year ago and up from $1.8 trillion at the end of 2007. So assets in bank holding companies rose by almost 50% in the past year.

The large increase in assets came in the area of investments in nonbank subsidiaries. The rise from the end of the third quarter of 2008 was $537 billion, or 135%. The increase since the end of 2007 was $592 billion, or an increase of 172%

These holding companies also increased their investment in bank subsidiaries as well, but only by $164 billion or by 14% since the end of the third quarter 2008.

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You see those ads all the time, “Get approved today!”, or “Get approved within minutes!”. Does this really mean anything, or does it actually work, that is the question? Well, when it comes down to student credit cards, I don’t want to burst your bubble, but most of the time, it’s going to take a day or so to get approval, because many credit card companies are strict, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t apply.

The reason that many credit card companies won’t approve you instantly is based on your credit score. Since many college students generally don’t have a credit history, they aren’t just going to approve you, but instead, they need to verify that you’re going to college, and that you’re legitimate. They want to make sure that you’re not also lying on your application, because many younger applicants tend to so.

So, what if you want to get approved instantly? If that’s the case, you may want to try a secured credit card, which approves everyone instantly, as long as you pay the deposit. If you can afford a student c

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The spending power of UK skiers’ credit cards has diminished. Many credit card users will face steeper costs during this year’s ski break, Santander Cards has said.

According to research commissioned by the credit card provider, the typical flight and accommodation package for winter sports holidays now costs £686, the highest price since the beginning of the decade.

The cost of staying at some popular resorts has risen by 15% this season, with the pound having weakened against the euro since last year.

Customers have the option to reduce their overall spend by taking out a credit card which does not charge extra fees on overseas transactions, such as Santander’s own Zero and the Post Office Platinum.

Prepaid cards also offer consistently lower charges on overseas payments and cash withdrawals than many mainstream credit cards.

Emma Roberts, director at Santander Cards, said: “Winter sports enthusiasts may well be tempted to try somewhere new this year because of the impact of the weak pound on prices for premium European skiing destinations.”

She added: “One way that winter holidaymakers can avoid unnecessary additional costs is to use a credit card that doesn’t charge them a fee on transactions made in a foreign currency.”

Recent analysis from Snowsports cited by Santander shows that the number of UK residents going on a winter sports break during the 2008-09 season fell by 6%. Read more…

This is the time of the year for stock market predictions, so I thought I would throw my hat in the ring.

My first prediction is there will be no end of “financial experts” who will shamelessly set forth their views on what will happen to the stock markets in 2010. Let’s take a look at some of their past predictions:

• Jeremy Siegel, the Russell E. Palmer Professor of Finance at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and the author of Stocks for the Long Run, predicted we would avoid a recession in 2008 and financial stocks would outperform the S&P 500.

Sorry, professor. The recession clobbered investors and financial stocks underperformed all market sectors.

• “Dr. Doom,” professor Nouriel Roubini, accurately predicted the mortgage-related crash of 2008. Flush with victory, he told investors to avoid the stock markets in 2009. He Read more…

Consumer debt has reached an all time high. Credit card companies are seeing charge offs happen at a much higher rate than in the past. Unsecured debt is often the first thing that a person will let slide when times get really tough. However, most responsible consumers don’t feel good about not paying their obligations. If you find yourself in this bind, you can find the best debt consolidations for your needs.

Home Equity

This is one of the options that has the least impact on your financial standing with creditors. However, you must take steps to eliminate debt problems before you default on your credit card accounts. Having missed payments can lower your credit score and hurt your chances of getting a home equity loan. If you play your cards right, you can roll your existing debt into a standard home loan payment and eliminate the stress caused by excessive monthly payments. You will, however, want to have a firm plan in place in order to avoid having problems in the future. T

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