Posted by Dana Hickles on August 31, 2009 at 9:43pm
Report: U.S. turns profit on bank bailoutsDallas Business JournalThe U.S. government has made a profit of about $4 billion on the bank bailout program so far as some of the largest banks have already repaid their loans, according to a report by the New York Times.In the Dallas-Fort Worth area, locally-based Plains Capital Corp. was listed late last year as the recipient of $87.6 million in Troubled Asset Relief Program funds.To date, the Treasury says it has allocated $250 billion in TARP funds.The Associated Press is now reporting that lawmakers, including Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif.; and Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, are going to draft legislation that will force companies benefiting from the funds to report how the money is spent.The lawmakers' decision follows an Associated Press report in which the news agency said it had asked 21 banks how they’re spending the money — only to receive no answers or vague answers at best.The article said the profit so far amounts to about a 15 percent return annually, and that the news comes as a pleasant surprise given a lot of controversy around the Troubled Asset Relief Program when it was approved.The profit so far has included $1.4 billion from Goldman Sachs, $1.3 billion from Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) and $414 million on American Express (NYSE: AXP), as well as between $100 million and $334 million in profit from the five other banks that have repaid the government, according to the Times report. It does not include $35 million from 14 smaller banks.The banks operating in the Dayton area that have paid back their TARP funds include U.S. Bancorp (NYSE: USB) and JPMorgan & Chase Co. (NYSE: JPM).The article cautions that the government has yet to be paid back by insurance giant American International Group (NYSE: AIG) or the automakers, General Motors and Chrysler.
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Financial is one of the important parts of the business. Whether it is a start-up business or an established business, business credit cards can be an aid in building business credit. As your business grows, you will need a helping hand to manage your business expenses and income. Using a business credit card separates your personal accounts from your business accounts. Most importantly, using business credit cards is the quickest and easiest way to obtain credit.Why Business Credit Cards?Here are some of the benefits why you should apply for a business credit card.Interest-free credit. Using business credit cards, your business can take advantage of interest-free credit for a limited period.Separation of expenses. For business, handling expenses is a difficult task. For example, how many times you've had to pay for a business dinner on your personal credit card if you need evidence of that.Expense managed report. With this, it allows you to get periodic reports of any section your business expenses. In this case, your accounting department no longer has to manually account for all your business expenses as the card comes with itemized monthly statements.Staff cardholders. Your staff can have each business credit card, so that they can meet their business expenses without having to pay for them personally.Online payments. You can pay quickly and easily all your business expenses online. In this way, it helps save your accounting team plenty of time and effort.Insurance. With the use of credit cards for business to pay for any business travel expenses of your staff members, they should not only get free travel insurance but also any other travel benefits that are associated with the card. In this way, it saves your business the expense of having to pay for the insurance separately.Higher credit line. Some credit card companies are willing to give business credit cardholders a higher level of credit than individuals. This should mean that your business never needs worry about how to pay for entertainment, stationary or travel expenses again.Rewards. Avail rewards packages with the use of your business credit card e.g. air miles, cash back, etc.Hotels. As a member of a business card program you may find that the card issuer has a special relationship with a hotel that gives you preferential bookings at hotels close to where you need to be - so no more long travel journeys from hotels to meetings.Billing. With small business credit cards billing, you may have an option whether to pay the entire balance each month or carryover a balance to the next statement period, as suits your business needs, much the same way individual credit cards do.
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