Banks firing low-level workers under new standards

Welcome to the morning roundup. Here's a look at what's news in banking and finance this morning.

Banks firing low-level workers. Big banks have been firing thousands of low-level workers because of new banking standards that prohibit employment of anybody who has been convicted of a crime involving dishonesty, USA Today reports. That includes minor crimes committed even decades earlier. The paper spoke with a Des Moines man was fired from Wells Fargo for putting a cardboard cutout of a dime in a washing machine in 1963.

Congressional staff helping homeowners. Congressional staff members have been increasingly negotiating with big banks on behalf of homeowners in their districts who are struggling to stay in their homes, the Baltimore Sun reports. Bank of America and Wells Fargo have even set up special hotlines to handle calls from Congress offices.

Libor suits grow. Lawsuits are piling up related to allegations of Libor interest rate rigging, raising the specter of billions in liability for banks like JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America, the Wall Street Journal says. It will take years for everything to be sorted out.

Merrill settlement goes to judge. A $40 million settlement of a suit former Merrill Lynch traders brought, claiming they were owed cash payments after Bank of America took over the investment bank in 2009, has been sent to a judge for approval, Bloomberg reports. The brokers said that leaving after the acquisition constituted a "good reason" that would trigger the payments.

BofA protest target. Unsurprisingly, Bank of America has become one of the prime targets of Republican National Convention protesters' animosity in Tampa, the Observer's contingent in Florida reports. Two hundred people marched on the bank's plaza in Tampa in a prelude to what should be even more direct protests next week in Charlotte.