Bank of America close to settling over credit card add-ons, reports say

Bank of America is close to reaching a settlement with a U.S. regulator over products it sold as add-ons to credit cards, according to news reports Thursday.

The Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the matter, reported that the bank is in talks to pay more than $800 million to settle with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The settlement would be the CFPB's largest ever with a financial institution, the WSJ reported. A deal could be announced in the coming days, according to the story.

A spokesman for the CFPB declined to comment when reached by the Observer. A Bank of America spokeswoman also declined to comment.

The Charlotte bank has been under scrutiny over the sale and marketing of credit card products that offered consumers debt cancelation in the event of a hardship like a job loss and identity-theft protection.

Bank of America no longer offers the products.

In January 2013, a judge approved a $20 million settlement to compensate customers who bought Bank of America's Credit Protection Plus product. Customers paid monthly fees in exchange for credit card payments being canceled in the event of a job loss or other hardship. The settlement affects customers who claimed, among other things, that they were signed up for the product without their consent or that the product was not as advertised.

In an August securities filing, the bank disclosed that it has been in talks with regulators to "address concerns" about the sale and marketing of credit card debt-cancellation products.

In a filing in 2012, the bank said regulators were looking at its identity theft-protection services. Regulators were interested in "customers who may have paid for but did not receive certain of such services from third-party vendors" of the bank and "whether appropriate oversight existed."

Robert Pittenger wants more voice for small businesses affected by regs

Rep. Robert Pittenger said Thursday that he is hoping to create an advisory board that will allow small businesses to have input on financial regulations that could negatively affect them.

Pittenger, a first-term Republican whose district includes part of Mecklenburg County, on Thursday afternoon plans to introduce legislation to establish the board, which would advise the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Pittenger will jointly introduce the bill with Rep. Denny Heck, a Democrat from Washington state, according to Pittenger’s office.

The bureau is a federal agency created by Congress in response to the financial crisis. Since its creation, the agency has issued rules designed to strengthen protections for consumers. In January, for example, CFPB rules took effect requiring mortgage lenders to ensure borrowers have the ability to repay.

But small businesses in financial services have no “regular advocate” at the CFPB, “meaning new regulations can be developed without considering how they negatively impact small business owners and employees,” Pittenger’s office says in a press release, an advance copy of which was obtained by the Observer. “Large banks already have the privilege of regular interaction with CFPB decision-makers.”

According to a draft of the legislation, it would require the director of the CFPB to establish the board and appoint its members. The board will be made of at least 12 members who will represent small businesses that provide financial products or services to consumers “primarily for personal, family or household purposes.”

The CFPB already has a process in place to hear the concerns of small businesses. Through meetings of the Small Business Review Panel, the CFPB can gather input from small businesses that are likely to be directly affected by regulations it might issue, according to a fact sheet.

Pittenger’s office points out that the Small Business Review Panel is convened only at the discretion of the CFPB. By contrast, Pittenger's proposed advisory board would be a permanent fixture and meet on a regular basis, his office said. The legislation calls for the board to meet at least twice a year.

“As a former small business owner, I understand the frustration of watching Washington bureaucrats make rules that needlessly and negatively impacted my business,” Pittenger says in the press release. “This common sense, bipartisan legislation will give small business owners a seat at the table.”

A CFPB spokesman said the bureau generally does not comment on proposed or pending legislation.

NewDominion Bank stock value rising

A year ago, NewDominion Bank finished a capital raise that put the Charlotte community bank back on solid footing. Bank executives say now it's started to pay off for those new stockholders.

The bank raised $10.5 million from about 260 investors, with an average investment of $40,000. Shares sold for 50 cents each, a heavy discount from the original capital raised when the bank was founded in 2004.

But NewDominion wrote shareholders this week to let them know that a third-party adviser has come in and valued the bank's common stock at 74 cents per share, a 48 percent increase.

"This valuation serves as one of many indications that we are headed in the right direction," CEO John Hipp wrote in the letter.

Wells Fargo getting a new CFO

The current head of Wells Fargo Securities will become the bank's new chief financial officer next month, Wells said Tuesday. It's part of a management shuffle as a long-time executive retires.

John Shrewsberry will take over the post from Tim Sloan, who's been Wells Fargo's CFO since 2011. Sloan is moving over to manage the wholesale banking business, which covers commercial banking, asset management, insurance and capital markets.

David Hoyt, who led wholesale banking for the last 16 years, is retiring after three decades at Wells Fargo.

Chanticleer Holdings reports larger loss in 4Q

Charlotte-based investment company Chanticleer Holdings lost $2.3 million in the fourth quarter of last year, or 61 cents a share, the company reported in a regulatory filing. A year ago, the company reported a loss of $879,000, or 24 cents a share.

The larger loss came as the company reported higher operating expenses for its restaurants. Payroll and occupancy costs for its restaurants were both higher, Chanticleer said.

Last year, the company, whose focus had been solely on owning and operating Hooters in other countries, began investing in other restaurant brands. During the quarter, the company bought a Hooters in England and a majority interest in the Charlotte-based Just Fresh restaurant chain. It also opened its fifth Hooters in South Africa in the quarter.

Restaurant operating expenses for the fourth quarter were $2.1 million, or 63.3 percent of restaurant revenue. That was up from restaurant operating expenses of $1.1 million, or 58.7 percent of restaurant revenue, a year ago.

Revenue for the fourth quarter was $3.3 million, up from $2 million a year ago. The higher revenue was the result of the restaurants Chanticleer opened or acquired, the company said.

For the full year, the company reported a net loss of $5.2 million, or $1.19 a share, up from a loss of $3.2 million, or $1.13 per share, in 2012.

In the same regulatory filing, the company said a Just Fresh location will open in the new Charlotte Knights BB&T Ballpark. The restaurant will open April 11, Chanticleer said. It will be the chain's sixth location, the company said.

Yadkin Bank makes push on small loans

Yadkin Bank said Tuesday it has developed a program to quickly make small loans to business customers, joining the fray of community banks competing for a piece of that market. In some cases, the bank won't ask to look at financial statements.

Called "Business Express," the program will make decisions on loans smaller than $250,000 in as quickly as the same business day. Yadkin Bank also says it has cut down on the paperwork required. No financial statements are required for loans less than $50,000.

Yadkin Bank's initiative comes as banks both large and small have pressed harder into small business lending. NewDominion Bank has also created a program to make decisions on most loans within 48 hours. Bank of America and Wells Fargo have also added bankers to handle small business customers.

BNC Bancorp completes acquisition of South Street Financial

The parent company of Bank of North Carolina said Tuesday that it has completed its acquisition of South Street Financial Corp., a $26 million deal that gives BNC Bancorp a deeper presence in the Charlotte area.

BNC announced the deal to acquire the parent company of Home Savings Bank of Albemarle in December. The bank has about $278 million in assets and $235 million in deposits primarily in Stanly and Montgomery counties.

Its branches will keep the Home Savings Bank name until June, when the conversion is complete, BNC said Tuesday.