Household HSBC Watch

Citigroup Inc., HSBC Finance Corp. and seven other companies agreed to help delinquent homeowners in Ohio avoid foreclosure in the first such accord between a state and home-loan servicers, Governor Ted Strickland said. Like alcoholics that keep drinking, the companies pledged to make an effort. Banks and other lenders pledged to modify terms […]

This is a classic example of how the subprime mess spun out of control. It is a classic example of how state regulators are continually frustrated by federal regulators and their desire to overrule state-level laws. Anyone who thinks they can get results from a local Better Business Bureau, when federal and state […]

HSBC rose in Hong Kong as investors think losses are overdone (overstated), and investors are thrilled at the prospect that HSBC has a firm offer for banks in France. There may be more to losses than meeets the eye, and investors will not be very happy if some people are correct. Simply stated, […]

Citigroup Inc. is abandoning a push to open as many as 100 branches a year in the U.S., concluding it had little chance to dislodge entrenched rivals in several markets. Barely two years after introducing the strategy, executives at New York based Citigroup now intend to sell or close some of the newest Citigroup […]

Many lenders went out of business or declared bankruptcy, but major losses and write-downs from subprime continue. Lawsuits are beginning, as Ohio’s Attorney General tries to show that Freddie Mac duped investors by not revealing how risky the subprime market was. The risk to other lenders is high if a precedent is set. […]

If Arab nations have money and the United States is no longer profitable just refocus. If Islamic finance seems attractive in the U.K. and U.S. just focus on your new new friends. That is the business model for HSBC - the Hong Kong Shanghai Bank, headquartered in London and doing business in […]

On one hand HSBC spokesman Michael Trevino said tax refund loans “represents a very small portion’’ of HSBC’s revenue. On the other hand such loans represent bad publicity for HSBC, with interest rates sometimes over 100 percent. Lawsuits such as Carnegie vs Household, paid by HSBC in 2007, cast HSBC in a bad […]

Consider the direction taken by Wells Fargo which insulated Wells from the current subprime mess. Now consider the position of HSBC Plc, and specifically HSBC Finance. Consider, if you will, the people facing uncertainty and rumors of layoffs. HSBC Plc failed the employees of HSBC Finance and former Household International employees. […]

We received this report late Friday and will protect the writer / sender’s identity:
I am amazed that the layoffs and future layoffs of super sub prime lending giant HFC (Household/Beneficial) , also known/owned and directed by HSBC has not made more headlines.

In the state of Pennsylvania alone more than 25 offices are likely to […]

It looks like HSBC’s Household International could have more company in terms of predatory lenders. The Massachusetts attorney general’s office has sued Fremont Investment and Loan, once the state’s second-largest subprime lender, accusing it of using predatory lending practices to sell loans to some borrowers who eventually lost their homes or had to […]