Wie weit gehts wieder hoch ? WAMUQ
JPMorgan to grant WaMu access to $4.4 bln in funds
NEW YORK, Oct 15 (Reuters) - JPMorgan Chase (JPM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) agreed to allow bankrupt savings and loan Washington Mutual Inc's (WAMUQ.PK: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) parent company to access $4.4 billion of its funds that may be used to help pay creditors.
WaMu's parent company can take back control of $707 million in deposits it had at Washington Mutual Bank and $3.7 billion it held at the bank's subsidiaries, according to documents filed with Delaware Bankruptcy Court on Tuesday. The agreement requires court approval.
JPMorgan agreed to buy Washington Mutual Inc last month after the owner of Washington Mutual Bank entered into receivership. Following the transaction, the companies entered into a standstill agreement limiting access to the deposits in order to give the companies time to verify the amounts, according to the documents.
Washington Mutual's holding company said in earlier court filings that it had about $5 billion on deposit with its banking subsidiaries prior to entering bankruptcy protection.
Creditor lawyers had been concerned that the funds in the deposits would not be available to pay back their clients. When the Seattle-based savings and loan company filed for bankruptcy protection, it listed $32.9 billion in assets and $8 billion in debt. (Reporting by Caroline Humer; Editing by Derek Caney)
(1)
...WaMu's parent company can take back control of $707 million in deposits it had at Washington Mutual Bank and $3.7 billion it held at the bank's subsidiaries
...to access $4.4 billion of its funds that may be used to help pay creditors.
(2)
...When the Seattle-based savings and loan company filed for bankruptcy protection,
it listed $32.9 billion in assets and $8 billion in debt.
Feds investigating WaMu collapse
U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Sullivan's office today announced that it was conducting an investigation of Washington Mutual and the events leading up to its takeover by the FDIC and sale to J.P. Morgan Chase.
Said Sullivan in a statement: "Due to the intense public interest in the failure of Washington Mutual, I want to assure our community that federal law enforcement is examining activities at the bank to determine if any federal laws were violated."
Sullivan's task force includes investigators from the FBI, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s Office of Inspector General, Securities and Exchange Commission and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations division.
Sullivan's office asks that anyone with information for the task force call 1-866-915-8299; or e-mail fbise@leo.gov.
"For more than 100 years Washington Mutual was a highly regarded financial institution headquartered in Seattle," Sullivan said. "Given the significant losses to investors, employees, and our community, it is fully appropriate that we scrutinize the activities of the bank, its leaders, and others to determine if any federal laws were violated."
WaMu was seized by the FDIC on Sept. 25, and its banking operations were sold to JPMorgan Chase, prompting a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing by Washington Mutual Inc., the bank's holding company. The takeover was preceded by an effort to sell the entire company, but no firm bids emerged.
The Associated Press reported Sept. 23 that the FBI is investigating four other major U.S. financial institutions whose collapse helped trigger the $700 billion bailout plan by the Bush administration.
The AP report cited two unnamed law-enforcement officials who said that the FBI is looking at potential fraud by mortgage-finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and insurer American International Group (AIG). Additionally, a senior law-enforcement official said Lehman Brothers Holdings is under investigation. The inquiries will focus on the financial institutions and the individuals who ran them, the senior law-enforcement official said.
FBI Director Robert Mueller said in September that about two dozen large financial firms were under investigation. He did not name any of the companies but said the FBI also was looking at whether any of them have misrepresented their assets.
Copyright © 2008 The Seattle Times Company
Ich hoffe mal das es die Tage mal richtig zur Sache gehen wird. Aber so langsam sollte mal etwas an News kommen, die uns nördlich tragen sollten.
Feds investigate Washington Mutual failure
Wed Oct 15, 2008 4:13pm EDT
NEW YORK, Oct 15 (Reuters) - Federal investigators have opened an investigation into the collapse of Washington Mutual Inc (WAMUQ.PK: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), the largest U.S. banking failure.
Jeffrey Sullivan, U.S. attorney for the western district of Washington, said in a statement on Wednesday that he has set up a task force that includes investigators from the FBI, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp and the Internal Revenue Service's criminal investigations unit.
Federal regulators seized Washington Mutual, once the nation's largest savings and loan, on Sept. 25 following a run on bank deposits.
JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) bought the Seattle-based thrift's banking units on that date for $1.9 billion. Washington Mutual later filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection from creditors.
"Given the significant losses to investors, employees and our community, it is fully appropriate that we scrutinize the activities of the bank, its leaders and others to determine if any federal laws were violated," Sullivan said in a statement. He said the probe comes on the heels of "intense public interest in the failure of Washington Mutual."
A spokesman for New York-based JPMorgan did not return a call seeking comment. A Washington Mutual spokesman had no comment. (Reporting by Jonathan Stempel; Additional reporting by Elinor Comlay in New York and Daisuke Wakabayashi in Seattle)
LINK: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/...=conews&tkr=WM%3AUS&sid=avZhJIjIwROU
Oct. 15 (Bloomberg) -- Washington Mutual Inc., the bankrupt holding company of the biggest U.S. bank to fail, has the right to withdraw $4.4 billion being held by JPMorgan Chase & Co. under a compromise between the two companies.
The companies have agreed that Washington Mutual will have control of the money if U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Mary Walrath in Wilmington, Delaware, approves an agreement over how the cash will be handled, according to court papers. The agreement preserves any rights JPMorgan may have to the money, which means that if a court later rules that some of the money belongs to the bank, the cash can be recovered no matter where it is held.
``It is an admission by JPMorgan that the money is ours,'' Washington Mutual attorney Marcia Goldstein said today in an interview.
The holding company sought court protection after its banking subsidiaries, including Washington Mutual Bank, were seized by U.S. government regulators and sold to New York-based JPMorgan for $1.9 billion. The $4.4 billion in cash is being held by Washington Mutual Bank, which isn't in bankruptcy. Banks are barred by federal law from seeking bankruptcy court protection.
Brian Marchiony, a spokesman for JPMorgan, didn't immediately return a call seeking comment.
Washington Mutual said it is investigating whether the money can be used to repay creditors, according to court papers filed yesterday.
Possible Claims
Lawyers for Washington Mutual's bondholders and those representing creditors of its former bank have said they may try to claim the cash.
Separately, the U.S. Trustee, the arm of the U.S. Department of Justice that monitors bankruptcies, appointed five members to a committee to represent the interests of unsecured creditors of Washington Mutual. Those members are: Bank of New York Mellon, Law Debenture Trust Co. of New York, Wells Fargo Bank N.A. and Wilmington Trust Co., all as indenture trustees for bondholders, and Verizon Services Corp.
The case is In Re Washington Mutual Inc., 08-12229, U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware (Wilmington).
To contact the reporter on this story: Steven Church in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Delaware, at schurch3@bloomberg.net.
16.10.2008 08:41
US-Ermittler untersuchen Zusammenbruch von Washington Mutual - WSJ
DJ US-Ermittler untersuchen Zusammenbruch von Washington Mutual (News) - WSJ
NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--Der Zusammenbruch der größten Sparkasse Washington Mutual Ende September wird einem Zeitungsbericht zufolge nun von Ermittlern der US-Bundesbehörden untersucht. Grund sei das "immense öffentliche Interesse" an der bislang größten Bankenpleite der US-Geschichte, schreibt die Zeitung "Wall Street Journal" (WSJ/Donnerstagausgabe). Jeffrey C. Sullivan, Staatsanwalt in Seattle, habe eine "Task Force" bestehend aus Ermittlern des FBI, der US-Börsenaufsicht SEC, der Bundessteuerbehörde (Internal Revenue Service/IRS) und des US-Einlagensicherungsfonds (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation/FDIC) gebildet.
"Angesichts der hohen Verluste für die Investoren, Mitarbeiter und die Gesellschaft ist es voll berechtigt, dass wir die Aktivitäten der Bank, ihrer Führungskräfte und weiterer Personen genau untersuchen und prüfen, ob hier Bundesgesetze verletzt worden sind", erklärte Sullivan laut WSJ in einer Mitteilung.
Die US-Sparkasse Washington Mutual Inc wurde Ende September von den zuständigen Aufsichtsbehörde geschlossen. In einem Notverkauf wurden anschließend Einlagen, Filialen und bestimmte Verbindlichkeiten des Instituts mit sofortiger Wirkung von der drittgrößten US-Bank J.P. Morgan Chase&Co übernommen. Der US-Einlagensicherungsfonds FDIC musste nicht einspringen. FDIC wurde von der Aufsichtsbehörde Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) als Konkursverwalter bei Washington Mutual eingesetzt.
Zur Schließung von Washington Mutual hatte unter anderem Einlagenabflüsse im Gesamtvolumen von 16,7 Mrd USD in den zehn Tagen vor dem Notverkauf geführt. Das Kreditinstitut habe nicht mehr über ausreichend liquide Mittel verfügt, um seinen Verpflichtungen nachzukommen, erklärte die Aufsicht zu diesem Zeitpunkt.
Washington Mutual mit Sitz in Seattle hatte als einfache Sparkasse begonnen, mit dem Immobilienboom der vergangenen Jahre seine Aktivitäten aber besonders auf den Hypothekenmarkt ausgerichtet. Laut Aufsichtsbehörde OTS hat der Konzern in den zurückliegenden drei Quartalen Verluste von 6,1 Mrd USD angehäuft. Washington Mutual war vor dem Notverkauf in 15 US-Bundesstaaten mit gut 2.200 Filialen vertreten.
18.10.2008 08:15
BRIEF-Washington Mutual names Kosturos chief restructuring officer
- Oct 17 (Reuters) - Washington Mutual Inc: (News)
* Says William Kosturos will act as the company's chief restructuring officer
* Says Kosturos and additional personnel will perform a financial review of the
company
* Says Kosturos to be paid $695 per hour, additional personnel paid $175 to
$750 per hour
* Says removes all officers w/exception of CEO Alan Fishman and Stewart
Landefeld, executive vice president
* Says appointed Kosturos president, vice president, general auditor,
controller, CFO, treasurer, assistant secretary and chief restructuring
officer
((New York Equities Desk; tel: +1 646 223 6000))
tf.TFN-Europe_newsdesk@thomson.com
ak
COPYRIGHT
Copyright Thomson Financial News Limited 2007. All rights reserved.
The copying, republication or redistribution of Thomson Financial News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Financial News.
Washington Mutual CDS settlement auction timeline
NEW YORK, Oct 22 (Reuters) - The value of credit default swaps backed by the bonds of Washington Mutual Inc (WAMUQ.PK: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) will be set on Thursday, and protection sellers may take losses of around 30-to-35 percent of the insurance they sold.
WaMu's banking arm, Washington Mutual Bank, was shut by the federal Office of Thrift Supervision last month. JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) acquired the majority of its assets, but left WaMu's debt outstanding at the holding company, which later filed for bankruptcy.
When a borrower defaults on its debt, protection sellers pay buyers the full amount insured, and in turn receive the defaulted debt, or cash equivalents that are set by the auction.
The value of WaMu's debt is complicated by a $5 billion deposit Washington Mutual Inc has in Washington Mutual Bank, Citigroup analysts said in a note on Wednesday.
"Should WaMu Inc retrieve the deposits, there will be a significant boost to recoveries," they said. "In fact, senior unsecured holders prepared to wait a couple of years might get par."
"Conversely, there is a possibility the $5 billion in cash could be considered as a loan to the bank, dampening recovery probability," the analysts added.
Bonds underlying WaMu Inc's credit default swaps are trading between 64 and 68 cents on the dollar, indicating concerns that the holding company may be unable to retrieve the deposit, Citigroup said.
Fourteen dealers will bid on the debt in the auction, and 519 institutions have signed up globally to take part, according to trade association the International Swaps and Derivatives Association.
The timeline for the auctions follows. Continued...
Initial Results of the Washington Mutual Auction, Thursday 23rd October 2008
Inside Market Midpoint: 63.625
Net Open Interest: $988 million to sell.
Adjustment Amounts
Dresdner Bank AG: $62,500
Below are the participating bidders for the Washington Mutual auction.
Bidder
Banc of America Securities LLC
Barclays Bank PLC
BNP Paribas
Citigroup Global Markets Inc.
Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC
Deutsche Bank AG
Dresdner Bank AG
Goldman, Sachs & Co.
HSBC Bank USA, National Association
J.P. Morgan Securities Inc.
Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated
Morgan Stanley & Co. Incorporated
The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
UBS Securities LLC
23.10.2008 20:20
WaMu CDS will recover 57 pct after auction
NEW YORK NEW YORK, Oct 23 (Reuters) - Sellers of protection on bankrupt Washington Mutual Inc (News) will have to pay out 43 percent of the insurance they sold, based on the results of an auction on Friday to determine the value of the credit default swaps.
The final value of the contracts will be 57 percent, according to results published by auction administrators Creditex and Markit.
(Reporting by Karen Brettell; Editing by James Dalgleish) Keywords: WASHINGTONMUTUAL SWAPS/
Chuck Mikolajczak
cm
COPYRIGHT
Copyright Thomson Financial News Limited 2007. All rights reserved.
The copying, republication or redistribution of Thomson Financial News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Financial News.
WaMu swap sellers sidestep big loss
Investors who sold default protection on failed Seattle-based thrift appear face much smaller loss than those who bet on Lehman Brothers.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Investors who wagered that Washington Mutual would somehow survive the latest market turmoil will have to pay far less than some had feared.
According to the final results of an auction of complex financial instruments called credit default swaps held Thursday, banks and other investors who sold these insurance-like products will have to pay 43 cents on the dollar to investors who bet that WaMu would default on its debt, according to Creditfixings.com.
"This is still a considerably higher recovery than many anticipated only a few weeks ago when [WaMu] bonds were trading in the 20s," said Tim Backshall, chief strategist at Credit Derivatives Research.
At those prices, sellers would have had to pay out as much as 80 cents on the dollar.
The final figures were higher than preliminary estimates from Creditfixings.com of a payout of about 36 cents on the dollar, but far below what happened at a similar auction held earlier this month regarding Lehman Brothers.
Investors who bet on the fallen Wall Street firm lost more than 91 cents on the dollar on credit default swap contracts.
Credit default swaps act as a form of insurance. Corporate bondholders sometimes purchase these products to protect themselves in case a company is unable to make their debt payments or goes bankrupt, as was the case with both WaMu and Lehman Brothers.
Other investors also use credit default swaps -- even if they don't own the company's debt -- as a way to make side bets about a company's health.
Investors feared during the Lehman Brothers auction on October 10 that troubles in the credit default swap could have exacerbated the recent turmoil in broader financial markets.
Stocks were whipsawed that day and some traders blamed concerns about the auction and the impact it would have on many already struggling banks for much of the volatility that day.
Yet buyers and sellers of Lehman credit default swaps managed to settle those claims earlier this week without any major fallout amongst financial institutions or the broader market, which many feared could happen.
Just $5.2 billion is expected to trade hands between investors that bet on a Lehman default, according to the Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation, which handles trades in over-the-counter markets such as credit default swaps, as some institutional investors both bought and sold credit default swaps.
Still, Thursday's auction offered yet another glimpse at this long-ignored market, which some estimate to be worth $55 trillion.
Over 500 parties participated in Thursday's WaMu auction, including major global financial institutions such as Bank of America (BAC, Fortune 500), Barclays (BCS), Citigroup (C, Fortune 500) and Goldman Sachs (GS, Fortune 500).
That number dwarfed the more than 350 banks and investors that took part in Lehman's auction. What remains unclear is whether the payments related to the WaMu's credit default swaps will surpass that of Lehman.
Yet in some ways, Thursday's auction brings the WaMu tale one step closer to the end.
Saddled by toxic home loans, WaMu struggled for months and tried numerous remedies to shore up its problems, including a $7 billion private equity investment and the expulsion of long-time CEO Kerry Killinger.
But fallout in the U.S. mortgage market and waning confidence in the company proved too much for the Seattle-based thrift.
Washington Mutual (WM, Fortune 500) collapsed on Sept. 29, making it the biggest bank failure in the nation's history. Federal regulators seized the company's banking operations, only to turn around and sell them to JPMorgan Chase (JPM, Fortune 500) for $1.9 billion. To top of page
07.11.2008 17:13
Washington Mutual wins interim order restricting stock transfers
Nov 7 (Reuters) - Washington Mutual Inc: (News)
* Says U.S. bankruptcy court enters interim order restricting certain transfers of its stock
* Says final hearing on motion set for November 14
* WaMu says motion applies to 'substantial equityholders' who could become owners of 4.75 percent of common stock, 4.5 percent of perpetual convertible preferred stock, or 4.75 percent of other preferred stock series
((New York Equities Desk; tel: +1 646 223 6000))
(For more news about Washington Mutual Inc click here:)
COPYRIGHT
Copyright Thomson Reuters 2008. All rights reserved.
The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
Washington Mutual wins ruling on limiting trading
Fri Nov 7, 2008 3:15pm EST
By Jonathan Stempel
NEW YORK (Reuters) - A U.S. bankruptcy judge ordered on Friday that trading be limited in Washington Mutual Inc (WAMUQ.PK: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) stock, a move that the largest U.S. lender ever to fail said could help it protect billions of dollars of tax breaks.
Judge Mary Walrath of the U.S. bankruptcy court in Wilmington, Delaware, found that unrestricted trading of common and preferred stock during Washington Mutual's bankruptcy case "could severely limit" the company's ability to use the tax benefits. Washington Mutual estimated it has more than $20 billion of losses that could qualify for the benefits.
The interim order covers "substantial equityholders" who own or plan to amass a least 4.75 percent of the thrift's common stock, or roughly similar stakes in preferred stock issues. Walrath scheduled a final hearing for November 14.
Separately, the judge authorized the appointment of William Kosturos as chief restructuring officer, and Alvarez & Marsal as restructuring adviser. The firm received a $250,000 retainer, and would be paid $695 an hour for Kosturos' work.
Seattle-based Washington Mutual filed for bankruptcy protection on September 26, a day after the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp seized its banking units and sold them to JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) for $1.9 billion. The bankruptcy covers the holding company, not the banking business.
Washington Mutual had argued that its consolidated net operating tax loss carryforwards and unrecognized losses were "valuable assets" because U.S. tax law generally lets companies carry over losses and tax credits to offset future income, lowering taxes owed to the government.
The FDIC had opposed Washington Mutual's request, arguing that carryforwards belong to the entity that actually incurred the loss, and said it might fight for rights it might have to related benefits. JPMorgan, meanwhile, wanted to be sure any court orders would not affect tax benefits to which it was entitled.
Washington Mutual, the holding company, had $8.17 billion of debts as of September 26, according to its bankruptcy petition.
The FDIC had no immediate comment. JPMorgan declined to comment.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel; Additional reporting by Elinor Comlay, editing by Gerald E. McCormick)
Angehängte Grafik:
wamuq_111108.gif
wamuq_111108.gif
Anstiegvon 16 oder was-weis-ich Prozent bei WAMPPQ ist bedeutungslos,schließlich notiert sie noch immer über 99% unter Ausgabekurs.
Übrigens:
Die großen Hoffnungen,daß mit dem Hearing morge um 16:30Uhr der Startschuss für den Run nach Norden eintritt, dürften unerfüllt bleiben.
In der "Notice Of Agenda Of Matters Scheduled For Hearing On November 14",
zu den Statii der Punkte:
Zu 1, .....wird am 25.11.08 weitergeführt
Zu 2, ......wird am 16.12.08 weitergeführt
Zu 3, .....wird am 25.11.08 weitergführt
Zu 4, . die Anhörung zu diesem Punkt dauert an..
Zu 5, ....dauert an...
Zu .............