“JPMorgan Chase & Co” on The Daily Caller

End of the financial reform stalemate. Republicans announced that they had achieved resolution of bailout loopholes on the financial regulatory reform bill Wednesday afternoon. “Now that bipartisan negotiations have ended, it is my hope that the majority’s avowed interest in improving this legislation on the Senate floor is genuine and the partisan gamesmanship is over,” said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Kentucky Republican, in a statement. After failing to move forward on Monday and Tuesday on the financial reform bill by the exact same vote, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Nevada Democrat, scheduled another vote on Wednesday which was promptly defeated as well. The count Wednesday was 56-42 with Senator Nelson, Nebraska Democrat, and Reid voting against the measure. Reid’s “no” vote allows him to bring it up again. A vote later Wednesday, after Democrats threatened to hold an all-night session, succeeded in getting Republicans to drop their filibuster. (more)

In his recent speech on Wall Street, President Obama tried to delegitimize any criticism of his proposed financial regulations and taxes. He said, “What’s not legitimate is to suggest that somehow the legislation being proposed is going to encourage future taxpayer bailouts, as some have claimed. That makes for a good sound bite, but it’s not factually accurate. It is not true. In fact…a vote for reform is a vote to put a stop to taxpayer-funded bailouts. That’s the truth. End of story.” (more)

First Senate Move on Financial Reform Defeated – Despite control of the White House, the House and the Senate, and almost 70% of the country supporting financial reform, the Democrats could not prevail on a crucial financial services vote Monday.  The first vote to move along the financial reform bill was defeated 57 to 41, with 60 votes needed.  While the press today is full of attacks for Republicans voting (as did the Democrats) along party lines, a major cause for the loss was the fact that Democrat Ben Nelson (D-Neb) voted with the Republicans against the financial reform bill. (more)

Those of you worrying on Wall Street, please do not be distracted by the president’s apparent assault. He’s still got your back. With the push beginning Monday to push through a “cap-and-trade” energy tax and rationing scheme—without committee hearings and possibly, according to Harry Reid, even using “reconciliation” again—your big “ask” appears to be in better shape than ever for being crammed down on the rest of us. (more)

After nearly two years of being drenched in red ink, Citigroup provided the strongest signs yet that the much-troubled bank is beginning to recover as it reported a $4.4 billion profit in the first quarter. (more)

We have just experienced the consequences of excessive risk taking by financial enterprises, real estate speculators, and overstretched homeowners fueled by the expectation that taxpayers would cover their losses if risky bets failed. Washington’s response to the financial crisis has confirmed these expectations and is thus compounding the problem for the future. Recovery of the U.S. economy and of the financial sector that finances it requires stabilizing the rules of the game and restoring market discipline of risk taking. Washington must give up the conceit that it can reliably micromanage socially desirable outcomes successfully. Regulatory rules must return the cost and reward of risk taking from the taxpayer to the risk taker. The moral hazard of financial risk takers taking the profits and tax payers bailing them out when their bets fail has seriously corrupted our financial system. It will not be easy to put that genie back in the bottle, but it can be done. (more)

JPMorgan Chase has named Anwar Zakkour, a veteran deal-maker, as its new head of technology mergers and acquisitions, according to an internal memorandum obtained by DealBook. (Read it after the jump.) (more)

Abstract: The Federal Reserve’s actions to stabilize financial markets and the U.S. economy during the recent credit crisis created a mountain of excess reserves owned by banks and held at the Fed. If released into the economy too quickly, these excess reserves would trigger a burst of inflation forcing the Fed to raise the Fed funds rate quickly and likely triggering yet another recession. How well the Fed responds to this inflation threat by managing the excess reserves will heavily influence the near-term course of the economy. The Fed appears to have the necessary tools, especially its newly granted ability to pay interest on excess reserves. The greater uncertainty is whether the Fed will use those tools wisely. (more)

1.) Punxsutawney Obama sees no shadow, declares end to long winter of avoiding the press — President Barack Obama made a surprise appearance at yesterday’s White House press briefing, surprising reporters who braved D.C.’s abysmal weather to hang out with Robert Gibbs. “Bipartisanship can’t be that I agree to all the things that they believe in or want and they agree to none of the things that I want,” the president said, his head still reeling from a meeting with congressional leaders, a few of whom honestly believe that the above is “in the dictionary.” The Daily Caller’s Jon Ward said the president’s move and the ensuing response–Republicans rolled their eyes, telling reporters, “We’ve heard this tune before”–signals a return to the kind of nasty partisanship that Americans aren’t sure they understand and don’t really love or hate. (more)

As recently as just a few weeks ago, President Obama called massive Wall Street bonuses “obscene,” “the height of irresponsibility” and “shameful,” an “outrage” and a violation “our fundamental values.” (more)

LONDON – US INVESTMENT bank JP Morgan Chase is no longer interested in buying the US unit of RBS Sempra, the commodities arm of troubled Royal Bank of Scotland, The Times newspaper reported on Monday. (more)

U.S. stocks tumbled Thursday amid concerns that a White House plan to restrict the growth of the nation’s largest banks could hurt their profits, sending Wall Street to its biggest one-day loss in three months. (more)

At the end of last year, the US Treasury proudly announced a $936 million gain from the sale of rights, called warrants, to buy common shares of JP Morgan at a price much lower than its current price.  These warrants were received by Treasury during the fall of 2008 in connection with its purchase of $25 billion in preferred stock of JP Morgan.  After JP Morgan redeemed the preferred stock a few months ago, the Treasury and the bank agreed to auction off the warrants to the highest bidder. (more)