BofA's Thompson says litigation will 'quiet down'

Bank of America chief financial officer Bruce Thompson told investors Friday that he expects the volume of litigation filed against the bank to soon "quiet down."

He said that the majority of lawsuits faced by the Charlotte bank come in the mortgage realm and deal with loans made between 2005 and 2008. Federal suits on mortgage issues must be filed within three years, Thompson said, and state suits have a six-year window.

"You clearly expect, for us, for litigation to continue to quiet down," Thompson told investors at the BancAnalysts Association of Boston Conference. "We continue to work very hard to put these legacy issues behind us."

Thompson also tried to impress upon investors that the bank was in a position to increase its revenue going forward. After acknowledging that he frequently hears that investors worry that the shrinking Bank of America has less ability to make money, Thompson said that taking out one-time accounting charges, Bank of America brought in slightly more money in the third quarter than it had the year before.

"We're at a point where you should judge us on how we're doing going forward," Thompson said.

Park Sterling boosts profits, will buy back stock

Charlotte-based Park Sterling Corp. announced Friday that it earned $620,000 in the third quarter, or 2 cents per share, and said it would use its better financial performance to buy back a significant percentage of its stock.

The bank's third quarter performance compares with a loss of $1.4 million in the same quarter a year ago. CEO Jim Cherry said in a statement that the difference came from setting aside less for bad loans and mortgage banking income.

Park Sterling also completed its merger with Citizens South Banking Corp. in the quarter.

The bank now has authorization from its board to buy back 2.2 million common shares, or 5 percent of its outstanding shares, over the next two years.

"This new share repurchase authorization reflects the confidence our board of directors has in Park Sterling's financial position and growth outlook, as well as their commitment to enhancing shareholder value," Cherry said in a statement.

Park Sterling shares were up more than 3 percent, to $5.09, at 1 p.m.

Bank of America faces 1.5 percent capital buffer

Bank of America could be forced to hold an extra 1.5 percent of top-quality capital as a systemically important financial institution, global regulators announced Thursday. That's significantly less than the 2.5 percent surcharge the bank could have faced.

Essentially, this additional capital buffer is an attempt to provide more of a cushion against losses in the event of another global financial crisis. Regulators have been devising the plan for about a year. The numbers will be revised again next year, and won't begin to phase in until 2016.

JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup are among four global banks facing the top capital charge of 2.5 percent. Some analysts had expected Bank of America to fall in that category.

The bank had not released an estimate for where it thought it would fall, and did not comment on the decision Thursday.

As it stands, Bank of America would already comply with all its new capital requirements. The bank has been shedding assets and business lines over the past several years, and reported a Tier 1 common capital ratio of 8.97 percent at the end of the third quarter.

Wells Fargo could face a 1 percent capital cushion requirement.

Bank of America's stock rose more than 4.5 percent Thursday, to $9.74. It had edged up slightly higher in after-hours trading, as of 5 p.m.

Wells Fargo touts mortgage performance

Every chance they get, investors quiz Wells Fargo executives on just how much longer the bank can make so much money in the mortgage business.

Perhaps that's why the San Francisco bank sent home lending head Mike Heid to present at the BancAnalysts Association of Boston Conference this morning.

His answer? At least a while longer.

Wells Fargo, the largest U.S. home lender, has ridden home refinancings to quarters of record profit over the past few years.

Heid said the bank should have a strong fourth quarter as well, going by the unclosed pipeline of loans at the end of the third quarter.

He also cited a large number of Wells Fargo customers who are good candidates for refinancing -- high interest rates and credit scores and a low loan-to-value ratio -- who haven't done so yet.

The bank has added 7,000 home mortgage employees in the last 15 months to catch up with the demand. That came after the bank dropped 5,000 employees in the unit from the end of 2010 to the middle of 2011. Heid said that's an indication that Well would be able to quickly cut costs should refinancings dry up.

Apart from being very profitable at the moment, Heid said that customers who have mortgages with the bank also tend to have a larger number of other financial products with Wells -- the key measure of the bank's emphasis on cross-selling.

BB&T set for major Texas expansion

BB&T announced Thursday that it will double its banking presence in Texas, adding 30 branches in four cities next year.

The expansion will be in Dallas/Ft. Worth, Houston, San Antonio and Austin, the bank said. The new branches still must be approved by regulators.

"The BB&T brand is gaining great traction in Texas, and our success with the community bank has been truly phenomenal," BB&T Texas region president Kay St. John said in a statement. "These four cities are densely rich commercial and small business markets representing many of the highest potential growth areas within BB&T's entire footprint."

The Winston-Salem bank will look to occupy vacant office space rather than build new branches. The $40 million investment is expected to add 150 jobs.

BB&T's deposits in Texas have grown nearly 70 percent in the last three years, the bank said. It now has $1.65 billion in loans in the state as well, and about 200 community banking employees at 27 branches.

The bank entered Texas through its 2009 acquisition of Colonial Bank.

BB&T has about 1,200 employees in Texas overall, including auto loan call centers and offices and insurance operations.

BofA, Wells donate $1 million each to Sandy relief

Bank of America and Wells Fargo have each announced they are donating $1 million toward Hurricane Sandy relief.

Bank of America's donation includes $500,000 to the American Red Cross hurricane fund. The other half will be given to national, regional and local nonprofits, the bank said.

The Charlotte bank is also refunding some overdraft fees and ATM fees incurred by customers because of the storm. Other customers affected can get credit line increases or avoid early withdrawal penalties on CDs.

“We have customers and employees throughout the hardest hit region and their safety is our main consideration,” CEO Brian Moynihan said in a statement. “As we do what we can to help them through this, we also are doing our part to help get relief to communities affected."

Wells Fargo is giving $250,000 to the American Red Cross and will divide the remaining $750,000 among nonprofits as needed, the bank said. Wells will also collect Red Cross donations at its ATMs.

The bank is also expanding its mobile deposit service into the affected states and is waiving late fees for credit cards and loans, as well as ATM fees, for affected customers.

Financial markets reopened Wednesday morning, and the Dow average was largely unchanged by midday.

Bank of America also reopened branches in Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Maine, New Hampshire, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Virginia, Washington D.C. and upstate New York.

Markets closed again as region recovers from Sandy

U.S. financial markets are closed again Tuesday, the longest shut-down due to weather since 1888, Bloomberg reports.

Many traders and other bankers in the Northeast are staying home as flooding subsides and the region takes stock of the damage.

Bank of America branches in all or parts of 10 states and the District of Columbia are closed. A number of Merrill Lynch Wealth Management offices are closed as well.

Customers affected can visit a webpage the bank set up or call 1-800-432-1000. The bank stressed that it is open for business.

"All customer and client services, aside from the banking centers that have been closed in areas impacted by Hurricane Sandy, are unaffected," spokesman Mark Pipitone said in an email.

Where branches are closed: New York City, parts of upstate New York, northern Virginia, and all of Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Rhode Island, New Hampshire and Washington, D.C.