| Elon woman charged with embezzlement
An Elon woman was charged with embezzling more than $10,000 from a Burlington contracting business where she was employed. The Alamance County Sheriff�s Department received a report from Todd Johnson of Johnson and Associates on Nov. 5, after he discovered that Penny Louise Simmons, 41, of Drew Lane, was allegedly writing unauthorized checks from his business account, according to a sheriff�s department release. Simmons managed the office of the small contracting business and was authorized to handle accounts payable and the payroll. She also was permitted to write and sign company checks, according to the release. �After an investigation, it was discovered that Mrs. Simmons was writing company checks for items unauthorized by Mr. Johnson, including checks written to cash, Penny Simmons, Food Lion and a bariatric clinic,� the release states.
Scam targets Regions customers
About 120 people called the Better Business Bureau of North Alabama throughout the day Tuesday to complain about an automated call asking them to validate their bank accounts. Michele McDaniel, president and CEO of the bureau, said people who received the calls were asked to dial a Nevada phone number and confirm information about their Regions Bank accounts. Their caller IDs displayed the words "This is a scam" instead of a phone number, prompting them to hang up and call the bureau. "We really don't quite understand why that's coming up," McDaniel said. "We have tried to call the numbers and have not been able to get through." The automated message also lists two Web sites, www.regionsrenew.com and www.regionscare.com, that customers can use to update their information.
JJ wins National Car account
National Car Rental has awarded its pan-European strategic brand positioning account to integrated agency JJ. The business, which also includes above- and below-the-line activity for its sister leisure brand Alamo Rent A Car, was given to JJ after a four-way pitch against undisclosed ... Want to read more? .
Freddie Mac posts $2 billion loss
The mortgage crisis intensified today as Freddie Mac, the nation's No. 2 buyer and guarantor of home loans, posted its largest quarterly loss ever and warned that it may need to curtail its business unless it can raise fresh capital. Freddie Mac lost $2 billion in the third quarter, much more than Wall Street was expecting, primarily because it needed to set aside $1.2 billion to account for bad home loans. It also said it may cut by half its quarterly dividend of 50 cents per share. That double dose of bad news sent Freddie Mac's shares skidding 25.5 percent, the largest decline in the two decades its shares have traded in public markets. It also sent a shudder through the mortgage market since Freddie's loss was even larger than the $1.4 billion quarterly deficit of Fannie Mae, its bigger government-sponsored competitor.
Freddie Mac reports biggest quarterly loss ever, of $2 billion
The mortgage crisis intensified Tuesday as Freddie Mac, the nation's No. 2 buyer and guarantor of home loans, posted its largest quarterly loss ever and warned that it might need to curtail its business unless it can raise fresh capital. Freddie Mac lost $2 billion in the third quarter, much more than Wall Street was expecting, primarily because it needed to set aside $1.2 billion to account for bad home loans. Freddie Mac also said it might slice in half its quarterly dividend of 50 cents per share. .
Freddie Mac pegs largest loss at $2B
WASHINGTON The mortgage crisis intensified Tuesday as Freddie Mac, the nation's No. 2 buyer and guarantor of home loans, posted its largest quarterly loss ever and warned that it may need to curtail its business unless it can raise fresh capital.
Freddie Mac lost $2 billion in the third quarter, much more than Wall Street was expecting, primarily because it needed to set aside $1.2 billion to account for bad home loans. Freddie Mac also said it may slice in half its quarterly dividend of 50 cents per share � which would be its first dividend cut since becoming a public company in 1989. That double dose of bad news sent Freddie Mac's shares skidding 28.7 percent, the largest decline in the two decades its shares have traded in public markets. It also sent a shudder through the mortgage market since Freddie's loss was even larger than the $1.4 billion quarterly deficit of Fannie Mae, its bigger government-sponsored competitor.
Banks missing opportunities to better serve small business - CFIB
Despite saying it wants to increase service to small- and mid-size business, Canada's banking sector is making little progress, the latest research from CFIB shows. Banking Matters reveals dwindling satisfaction with major financial institutions, with only two improving their rating since the previous survey in 2003. "Since the late 1980s fewer and fewer small business owners have applied for bank financing," CFIB President Catherine Swift explains. Small business loan activity has remained fairly stable since 1988 while loan activity for larger businesses has increased significantly. "This trend shows the banks may be missing opportunities for growth with the small business sector that accounts for 45 per cent of the Canadian economy," Swift says. "You have to question whether banks are meeting the borrowing needs of small businesses." CFIB asked members to rank their financial institution on nine performance indicators, including lending terms, service charges, access to full-service branch, online banking and treatment by their account manager.
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