MORNING BRIEFS

*The President said in his speech yesterday to Wall Street that the banks have paid back some $70 billion to the federal government, i.e. the taxpayer. But I wondered why he didn't go on to say that they also borrow money for free and raise our interest rates on credit cards to 19%. Sounds like the same ole same ole to me. None of them get it.

Obama tells Wall Street to remember lessons from crisis
President Barack Obama warned top executives in the U.S. financial system, gathered at Federal Hall National Memorial in the heart of Wall Street, not to make the mistake of forgetting lessons learned during the financial crisis. The fact that the financial system is showing signs of recovery is no excuse to set aside regulatory reform, he said. "Normalcy cannot lead to complacency," Obama said. "Unfortunately, there are some in the financial industry who are misreading this moment. Instead of learning the lessons of Lehman [Brothers] and the crisis from which we're still recovering, they're choosing to ignore those lessons." The Washington Post (15 Sep.)

U.S. judge rejects BofA settlement with SEC
U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff rejected a $33 million settlement between the Securities and Exchange Commission and Bank of America for charges that the bank misinformed investors about the acquisition of Merrill Lynch. Rakoff said the SEC failed to identify individuals allegedly responsible for the action. The ruling means the case will have to go to trial next year. Financial Times (tiered subscription model) (15 Sep.)

Assets under management, number of millionaires decrease
There are fewer millionaires in the world than there were before the recession in 2008, according to a Boston Consulting Group study. The amount of assets under management contracted 21.8% to $29.3 trillion, the first global drop in almost a decade. The recession has "shattered confidence in a way we have not seen in a long time," said Bruce Holley, senior partner and managing director at Boston Consulting Group's New York office. Reuters (15 Sep.)

Dollar falls close to weakest level this year against euro
The U.S. dollar dropped near its weakest level this year against the euro as investors traded the currency for higher-yielding options. The low interest rate on the dollar is supporting a wave of dollar borrowing, but then investors sell the currency into those that pay higher interest. The dollar traded at $1.4598 against the euro Tuesday morning in London, compared with $1.4618 on Monday in New York. The yen was at 91.10 against the dollar Tuesday morning. Bloomberg (15 Sep.)