The American Banker newspaper named M&T Bank’s CEO Robert G. Wilmers and a member of the Business Council’s board of directors, Banker of the Year for 2011. The publication picked Wilmers for the top award for his “throwback approach” which he has used to guide M&T Bank as one of the best performing banks for decades, even through tough economic times, and for his candor about problems in the banking industry and government.

Robert G. Wilmers is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of M&T Bank Corporation (NYSE:MTB) and its principal subsidiary, M&T Bank. He has served in that position since May 1983, when M&T had assets of $2 billion. Today, M&T’s assets total more than $68 billion.

For more information click here.

Jonathan Epstein writes in the Buffalo News - “M&T Bank Corp. ranked third in the country for satisfaction among small-business banking customers in a new national study that also found small businesses happier with their banking service than they were last year.

The report by J.D. Power & Associates gave Buffalo-based M&T a score of 764 on a 1,000-point scale, tying it for third place with Branch Banking & Trust, the primary subsidiary of BB&T Corp. of Winston-Salem, N.C.”

To read more click here.

According to a press release from the Attorney General:

“NEW YORK – Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman and the City of New York today filed a lawsuit against the Bank of New York Mellon (BNY Mellon) for defrauding clients in foreign currency exchange transactions. The lawsuit seeks to recover the profits BNY Mellon illegally earned by deceiving its customer. The victims include both public and private pension funds, including those of the New York City Employee Retirement System (NYCERS) and the State University of New York.

Over a 10-year period, BNY Mellon consistently misrepresented to customers the rates it would give foreign currency transactions. Instead of providing the best interbank rates– as it promised – BNY Mellon gave the worst or nearly the worst rates of the trading day. The Bank made nearly$2 billion from these trades, accounting for over 65 percent of its foreign exchange revenues.

“This landmark case uncovered a fraud committed against both government and private pension funds,” Executive Deputy Attorney General Karla G. Sanchez said. “This office will continue to commit its full resources to hold those responsible accountable, seek restitution for the victims, ensure that our markets are fair and transparent, and uphold one set of rules for all market participants.”

To read the full release click here.

This from the governor’s press office - “”Given the possible losses from the HSBC divestment in New York, this is the best possible outcome for HSBC’s employees and branches across the state. In addition, this purchase is good news for New York because First Niagara is a New York company that has a record of growth and creating jobs in upstate New York and with this deal it is showing that it is poised to continue and expand this important commitment to our state and our workforce.

Totaling over one billion dollars, this is also a major acquisition by an upstate New York business and should be seen by businesses across the country and around the world that New York State is a place they can invest and grow.

I want to thank John Koelmel, President and CEO of First Niagara, for investing in New York and for agreeing to serve this state as a member of my Western New York Regional Council for economic development.

The top priority of my administration is to create jobs and grow our state’s economy and today’s news is a hopeful sign for our economic future.”

To read the Associated Press story on the HSBC sale of 195 bank branches click here.

Aaron Rutkoff writes in the Wall St. Journal (subscription-based) - “Lawmakers in Albany are set to merge the two state agencies overseeing the banking and insurance industries in New York, part of the budget deal reached earlier this week.

As The Journal”s Liz Rappaport reports, the merger provision is a 100-page section inside Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s budget bills. Both chambers of the legislature voted Tuesday evening to pass the proposed merger, and the full budget is likely to be passed later this week. The new agency, called the Department of Financial Services, also would have a financial-fraud and consumer-protection unit.”

To read more click here.

Craig Wolf reports in the Poughkeepsie Journal - “M&T Bank is investing $10 million in its Hudson Valley facilities, including adding a high-tech operations center at its regional office in the Town of Fishkill.

Executives said Wednesday that the work will affect all 31 branches in Dutchess, Ulster, Orange, Putnam and Sullivan counties, but especially Wappingers Falls and Hopewell Junction, which will get major renovations. The Newburgh Route 9W branch will be demolished and a new building put up, said Michael T. Keegan, president of the Hudson Valley division of the Buffalo-based bank.”

To read more click here.

“New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, meeting the financial industry halfway, made amendments to his budget that would scale back the financial-enforcement authority he proposed for a new banking and insurance regulator.

Mr. Cuomo, a Democrat, narrowed the definition of financial fraud and financial products that would be used by the state’s Department of Financial Regulation. The newest version of the proposed budget also removes references to the Martin Act, a New York law passed in 1921 and a powerful tool for prosecutors because it doesn’t require a showing of a suspect’s intent to defraud,” writes Liz Rappaport in the Wall Street Journal(subscription-based).

To read more click here.

In public testimony before a joint hearing of the Senate Finance Committee and Assembly Ways and Means Committee, The Business Council expressed concern about the proposed merger of the Departments of Banking, Insurance and Consumer Protection Board into a new Department of Financial Regulation.  Since this proposal will have a major impact on one of the state’s most important economic sectors and will have no impact on the state budget, The Business Council urged the legislature to give it a complete and thorough review even if that means taking action outside the budget process.

The Business Council’s full testimony is available here.

According to a Wall Street Journal article (subscription-based) by Michael Rapoport - “Accounting rule makers, bowing to an intense lobbying campaign, took a key step Tuesday to reverse a controversial proposal that would have required banks to use market prices rather than cost in order to value the loans they hold on their balance sheets.

The debate over the proposal is the latest chapter in a pitched battle pitting investors who wanted better disclosure of the value of banks’ assets against the banks themselves. Banks have argued against so-called fair-value accounting, saying market prices would have left them at the mercy of volatile markets and could have caused additional strain during the financial crisis.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board preliminary vote would allow banks to continue valuing many of their loans at amortized cost, an adjusted version of their original cost, as they do now. That backtracks on an FASB proposal last May to expand fair value to bank loans. The reversal is a victory for the banking industry, which says it would have hurt lending and unfairly reduce banks’ book value. Supporters of the FASB fair-value proposal say it would have improved transparency and unmasked potential weakness at banks.”

To read more click here.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) has invited thousands of area homeowners to attend an event offering one-on-one consultation sessions for customers who are facing financial hardships and might have problems paying their mortgages. Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, Wells Fargo Financial, Wachovia Mortgage and Wells Fargo Home Equity customers facing financial hardships can schedule appointments on either January 25 or 26 between 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the New York Marriott at Brooklyn Bridge in Brooklyn. Bilingual representatives are available to assist customers during the event. Walk-ins are welcome, but registration is strongly recommended to guarantee customers the opportunity to meet in-person and one-on-one with a representative. Customers should sign up by Jan. 23 for the Brooklyn workshop at www.wfhmevents.com/leadingthewayhome. For more information call 1-800-405-8067.

“Wells Fargo is committed to helping people stay in their homes,” said Joe Kirk, Wells Fargo’s New York and Connecticut regional president. “This workshop is another example of our efforts to reach out to homeowners facing payment challenges and provide answers on the options available for them.”

Over the two days, more than 100 home retention team members will be available to meet with customers to confidentially discuss with them their financial situation and potential options. Plus, customers can find out about their eligibility for programs — like the government’s Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) – that may help keep homeowners facing financial challenges in their homes. Customers should bring all of their home mortgage documents, recent pay stubs, tax returns, bank statements and everything they would if they were applying for a home loan.

Since January 2009 through the end of November 2010, Wells Fargo has modified 600,629 mortgage loans – of which 86 percent (or 515,568 mortgages) were done outside of HAMP. In the third quarter of 2010, about 92 percent of Wells Fargo’s mortgage customers remained current on their loan payments and the company’s delinquency and foreclosure rates were three-fourths that of the industry, according to data published by Inside Mortgage Finance. As a result, less than 2 percent of the loans secured by owner-occupied homes and serviced by Wells Fargo proceeded to a foreclosure sale in the last 12 months.

New York Fed’s new small business poll shows evidence of credit demand; cash flows for small businesses key to credit approval

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York today released Access to Credit: Poll Evidence from Small Businesses, based on a poll conducted this summer of 426 regional small businesses.

Here are the headline findings:

· Existing credit demand – 59% of respondents applied for credit in the first half of 2010. However, only half of applicants were approved for credit.

· Importance of cash flows to credit approval— retained business earnings and sales/revenue growth were the keys to credit approval—and likely reflect the difficulty of asset-based lending.

· Weakened applicant quality—over two-thirds of respondents experienced declining sales/revenues between mid-2008 and mid-2010, which may help to explain why credit access is limited.

· Unmet credit needs—three quarters of applicants received only ‘some’ or ‘none’ of the credit they wanted.

To read the the full report, podcast, and details about the data click here. We would like to thank the many Business Council small business members that took the time to help the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and The Business Council with this report.