A day of market turbulence on both sides of the Atlantic saw Ireland nationalise its third-biggest lender while in the US, several banking stocks slid to fresh multi-year lows, with Bank of America shares falling 18% and Citigroup – due to report quarterly results Friday – down 15%. The turmoil was fed by rumours that a big US bank such as Citi could be nationalised. Sheila Bair, head of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, played down such speculation, even as BofA was finalising a large government rescue package and concerns grew about Citi’s financial health. Among US regional lenders to sustain heavy losses, Marshall & Ilsley shares sank 26% after the bank slashed its dividend from 32 cents to 1 cent a share following an unexpected Q4 loss.

This entry was posted by Gwen Robinson on Friday, January 16th, 2009 at 5:54 and is filed under Capital markets. Tagged with BofA, citi, Marshall & Ilsley, Sheila Bair. FDIC. Edit this entry.