Friday, July 18, 2008

Short-Sale Rule

"In a letter to Mr. Cox, the American Bankers Association, a trade group that represents the interests of 8,500 banks, said it fears short sellers will now focus on banks not covered by the new rules, many of which are already big targets of short sellers.

"The emergency order could further exacerbate a loss of confidence in the safety and soundness of this country's banking industry," the ABA wrote, as it called for an expansion of the order to including stocks of banks and bank holding companies.

The Financial Services Roundtable, an organization that represents 100 of the largest U.S. financial companies, also asked the SEC to extend the order. It wants to have all financial-services companies covered in the second week....

Other companies that also have been under selling pressure didn't make the cut, including Wachovia Corp. and Washington Mutual Inc. Washington Mutual also submitted a letter to the SEC asking the order to include other financial institutions, a person briefed on the matter said...

"The current universe of names is too narrow" and should include the largest U.S banks, said Kristen Baird Adams, a spokeswoman for Cleveland-based National City. She said the bank intends to contact the SEC."
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121642263809866665.html?mod=hps_us_whats_news

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