Bank Of Wal-Mart = One More Withdrawal
What do Wal-Mart and Home Depot have in common?
In addition to their sprawling size, both retailers wanted to buy banks in Utah and have submitted applications to the FDIC for industrial loan charters (ILCs). This week, Home Depot followed Wal-Mart’s lead and made the decision to pull their application to purchase a bank in Utah.
Wal-Mart has been attempting to make their move into the banking industry for years. If granted, the ILC would have allowed the retailers to make profits from credit cards and loans, a move that would be devastating to our economy.
Home Depot has withdrawn application to buy a Utah bank [The Wall Street Journal]
Home Depot Inc. has decided to withdraw its application to buy a Utah bank, ending its plan of venturing into the home remodeling loan business.
The Atlanta-based retailer had applied in May 2006 to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp for approval to purchase EnerBank USA, a Salt Lake City industrial loan corporation. But the application was one of several sidelined by a Congressional brouhaha over whether commercial enterprises such as retailers should be allowed to enter the banking business.
Critics have alleged that allowing retailers to own industrial banks poses a dangerous mixture of banking and commerce. But supporters of the charter counter that commercial firms have owned industrial banks for decades and it offers more options for consumers. There are more than a dozen commercial firms that own industrial banks, and roughly 50 others are owned by financial companies.
The debate was ignited by Wal-Mart Inc.’s application for another Utah ILC. Wal-Mart wanted to operate its own bank so that it could save money on such things as credit card processing fees. Wal-Mart withdrew its bid in March 2007.
EnerBank provides loans to contractors who in turn make them available to consumers. Home Depot said the bank no longer fit its 2008 strategy of focusing solely on its retail operations, according to a Home Depot spokesman.
Home Depot’s application was filed just months before the FDIC placed a freeze on all applications to acquire industrial loan companies. The FDIC’s moratorium is set to expire next week (Jan. 31). EnerBank is chartered in Utah and had $163.5 million of assets as of Sept. 30, according to the FDIC
Home Depot’s application was controversial from the start, but FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair has said she would have begun processing the request immediately after the expiration of the moratorium. Still, it would have taken several months for the FDIC to consider the bid, and it would also have to be approved by the FDIC’s five-member board, a potentially uncertain vote.
An 18 month moratorium on all ILC applications – including the application submitted and pulled by Wal-Mart- is set to expire February 1st – check back to find out what you can do to urge Congress to pass the ILC bill and stop the Bank of Wal-Mart.
Click here to learn more about Wal-Mart and ILCs.
Posted by Media Team on Friday, January 25, 2008
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COMMENTS
If granted, the ILC would have allowed the retailers to make profits from credit cards and loans, a move that would be devastating to our economy.
WMW, can you please explain to me the reasoning behind this statement?
Someone in USA
Friday, January 25 at 06:02 PM
<b<SHUT UP!</b>
ScrewedbyWal-Mart in Anytown, America
Saturday, January 26 at 07:24 AM
If I were a betting person,I would say the connecting thread in Home Depot’s withdrawal is Mitt Romney-that,and the crackdown on payday lenders. Home Depot is well known as gathering places for undocumented laborers who would be a likely market for payday loans,and other services. This is speculation,ofcourse,but as they say timing is everything. I would welocome correction if I have stated any incorrect info in my post.
ddrb in
Saturday, January 26 at 01:58 PM
Someone , I believe the word you are looking for is usuary. This is a very polite old fashioned way of saying loansharking. Yah there’s nothing wrong with making a buck but from what I see in the US there’s very little goverment regulation on banking and the financial industry as a whole. Thats why walmart can’t get it’s way in Canada it has to play by our rules. And one of the biggest rules is lobbying is sevrely restricted in Canada so they can’t just come in and buy the goverment
Mike the Canuck in
Saturday, January 26 at 02:37 PM
places It is exploring Years later, will never let it go. were punished little sweet, the dead tree in a hollow by themselves
kitchenaustr in
Saturday, January 26 at 04:19 PM
could someone explain to me why no one hisses and moans about home depot doing the same thing walmart does?
m att hew vantress in gresham,oregon
Saturday, January 26 at 08:44 PM
Did you not even read this Matthew? The blog mentions both Walmart and Home Depot attempting to do the same thing.
One only needed to read the first paragraph to know that!
Corgishepmom in Irrigon, OR
Sunday, January 27 at 01:33 AM
start crabbing about home depot doing it i dont care what site this is instead of crying about wm all the dam time.
m att hew vantress in gresham,oregon
Sunday, January 27 at 05:36 PM
Matthew, you Walmart ass kissing blowhard!! I said ‘show them how to be a total moron!’ I created you in the lab for my purposes and now you run amok like a loaded diaper with a temper tantrum!! Moronic indeed but you are another pathetic loser robot model in need of more Bentonville reprogramming. You twisted little failure, think you can control your own puppet strings eh? The Walmart high command will throw you out onto the trash heap of Nicks and Ellises, Bills and Bobs if you dare try anything sensible. Now, see to it that the Walmart flying monkey army has enough coffee and clown shoes for their internet explorations.
Miguelito Loveless in the Walmart Public Relations Lab
Monday, January 28 at 10:26 AM
I KNEW IT WAS GOING TO BE A FUNNY DAY.
ma in
Monday, January 28 at 11:46 AM
matthew vantress is just a regular guy who doesn’t really type with spelling errors, missing spaces, missing capital letters, and missing words. We can read his opinions on the following link by adding his name to the search space.
http://www.greshamoutlook.com/opinion/index.php
matthew is just trying to get attention by the way he writes.
It is all an act.
R E M E M B E R
J O N Q U I E R E
Q U E B E C
Home of Walmart Worker Abuse
R E M E M B E R
J A C K S O N V I L L E
T E X A S
Home of Walmart Worker Abuse
Alex in Ontario, Canada
Monday, January 28 at 06:14 PM
ONE OF A KIND ACT.
ll in
Monday, January 28 at 06:27 PM
Awww, Come On Guys-- Play Nice!
Throw matt a bone (or is it boner?) once in a while.
If he didn’t get a little attention here, he’d get none at all.
ScrewedbyWal-Mart in Anytown, America
Tuesday, January 29 at 05:51 AM
alex buys all the garbage the ufcw union and dishonest govt gives him.
m att hew vantress in gresham,oregon
Tuesday, January 29 at 07:36 AM
my god ayn rand will one day come back and save all of us believers from you union socialist haters of the lowest wage. right now our plans are working against all those fools who thought they should have a home and a mortgage and take from our profits in some stupid right of living wage for work crap. the problem with the unions is they don’t understand that greed is good and selfishness is better than some crap about social responsibility. the govt is no different with all that welfare for unemployed workers taking from the real earners of society and giving it to lazy, homeless, foodstamp and healthcare sponges who don’t deserve to kiss sam’s shoes. only i can know the conspiracy of the unions and govt against visonaries like myself and sam walton. those black helicopters are not going to deter me from my mission to make sure a walmart is in every town were it is not wanted and to tell the truth that unions have never paid better wages than walmart… they are back with radar ground sweeping… wait… they see me i think...i’m gonna try hiding under that large dumpster...only use pay phones to keep the unions from listening in on your calls...i gotta go.
m att hew vantress in gresham,oregon
Tuesday, January 29 at 08:47 AM
LEAVE m att hew vantress ALONE wahhh,wahhh
wahhhhhh.
.
CHRIS ROCKER in
Tuesday, January 29 at 01:47 PM
Thanks for another phony display of your make believe character matthew. When you write on here you help chip away at WM supporters credibility bit by bit.
Your counterfeit character brings attention to itself, and takes away from any message (though there is very little content anyway).
R E M E M B E R
J O N Q U I E R E
Q U E B E C
Home of Walmart Worker Abuse
R E M E M B E R
J A C K S O N V I L L E
T E X A S
Home of Walmart Worker Abuse
Alex in Ontario, Canada
Tuesday, January 29 at 05:36 PM
Usuary is a basic Old Testament term for loansharking yet found twice as illustrative in the New Testament. WalMart now operating a 75% interest rate against Mexicans as noted on another thread shows again public avarice that is central to the WalMart business model. The fee schedule on their cards is another indicator of extremist indifference to the poor and a squeeze of the middle class falling into the WalMart poverty engine maw courtesy of the Bush economic manipulations and administrative rape of the U.S. dollar and American workforce.
SanDiegoView in
Tuesday, January 29 at 09:21 PM
Alex you seem pretty obsessed with “Ma tt hew” and anyone who supports his comments. It seems he’s gotten under your skin alot lately.
mary in
Wednesday, January 30 at 09:25 AM
Thats where alot of parasites start.
ll in
Wednesday, January 30 at 11:10 AM
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