Bank of America in Talks to Buy Lehman Bros.

BofA, Barclays balk at bad assets, but bailout not in the cards

(NEWSER) - Washington and Wall Street continued talks today aimed at solving the Lehman Brothers crisis as early as tonight, the Wall Street Journal reports. Federal Reserve officials still refuse to approve a bailout like the one that enabled JP Morgan to acquire Bear Stearns this summer—but possible buyers like Bank of America and Barclays are balking at Lehman's bad assets, which have so far hindered a deal. More»

Paulson & Co. say cash was to 'facilitate orderly wind-down' of trades, but questions persist

(NEWSER) - After refusing to bail out Lehman Brothers, the Federal Reserve funneled $87 billion to a subsidiary through JPMorgan Chase on Sept. 15, then another $51 billion the next day. The feds say they aimed to “facilitate an orderly wind-down” of Lehman’s broker-dealer operations, Andrew Ross Sorkin writes in the New York Times, but their changing explanations, and other issues, continue to muddy the waters. More»

Workers win severance and benefits

(NEWSER) - Laid-off workers who occupied a Chicago factory have agreed to end their sit-in after winning severence pay and benefits, Reuters reports. Each of the 200 workers at shuttered Republic Windows and Doors will receive two months pay, accrued vacation and two months health care coverage. The $1.75 million cost of the deal is being covered by the company's creditors. More»

Finance could take steps to mend the crisis of confidence

(NEWSER) - It’s easy to criticize Hank Paulson, writes Steven Pearlstein for the Washington Post—for not predicting the depth and breadth of the crisis as subprime mortgages went sour a year ago, for letting Lehman Brothers fail, or for taking his lead from the UK this weekend. But Paulson and others in the government have shown admirable leadership—"Wall Street, by contrast, has served up a nothing sandwich." More»

(NEWSER) - The House passed the revised $700 billion buyout plan this afternoon, 263-171, raising hopes that the economy will be able to fend off a recession, reports the Washington Post. After 5 days of arm-twisting, 26 Republicans switched their no votes; a total of 91 joined 172 Democrats in backing the legislation today. Within minutes, President Bush said he'll sign it as soon as Congress gets it to him. More»