Buffett's firm seeks independent examiner in ResCap bankruptcy

Welcome to the morning roundup. Here's a look at today's banking and finance headlines.

ResCap bankruptcy. Warren Buffett's firm has asked a court to appoint an independent examiner in the Residential Capital LLC bankruptcy case to investigate transactions between the mortgage unit and its parent, Ally Financial Inc., Reuters reports. Berkshire Hathaway, a major creditor, said the transactions with Ally were "potentially improper."

OCC ethics. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency worked around strict ethics rules when it appointed David Wilson to oversee supervision policy for all national banks, because he's married to a high-level executive at Bank of America, American Banker reports. Wilson was later reassigned, but industry experts said placing him in the role made the regulator appear too close to big banks.

New banking business. Citigroup Inc. is expanding into the little-known field of identity proofing, or proving people are who they say they are, in search of bigger profits, the Wall Street Journal reports. The lender will begin by issuing digital ID badges to government contractor employees later this month.

European crisis. As Europe's debt crisis deepens, U.S. companies are warning investors that sales there are slowing and could get worse -- a sign of the trouble's impact on the global economy, the New York Times reports.

JPM loss. Top U.S. bank JPMorgan Chase & Co. might report a $4.2 billion second-quarter trading loss in its chief investment office, according to one investment firm's estimate, Bloomberg reports. International Strategy & Investment Group Inc. said the pretax loss could drive earnings to 65 cents per share, down 30 percent from an earlier estimate.