Progressive Group Says Lending Decline Continues Despite Favorable Bank Earnings Reports, Calls for Independent Investigation

In a statement issued yesterday, the Campaign for America’s Future, which presents itself as a progressive political group, asserted that major banks have employed accounting rules “to obfuscate losses” in recent favorable earnings reports.

The announcement also called for the government to step in and investigate the causes and scope of the financial crisis. While supporting the Congressional Oversight Panel chaired by Harvard Law Professor Elizabeth Warren as “a step in the right direction,” the announcement warned that a more forceful investigation with subpoena power is needed.

“These major banks are carrying toxic paper that they don’t want to mark down, for fear it would reveal just how insolvent or close to insolvent they are,” according to Robert Borosage, Co-Director, Campaign for America’s Future, in a statement in the organization’s news release. “They understandably will do what they can to hide the reality. In recent weeks, we’ve seen accounting standards diluted to aid them in that effort, and now we see accounting dodges to suggest they are on the way back. Meanwhile, actual lending continues to decline.” Sphere: Related Content

Small Business Lending Indicators Rising, Analytics Firm Reports

SAN DIEGO (April 17, 2009) — Increased activity in an online service that connects business borrowers and lenders indicates that the small business loan market may be showing signs of recovery.

Edgeware Analytics, a provider of analytics and marketplaces for small business credit, reports an increase of 60 percent in applications from banks for membership in its Small Business Loan Exchange (SBLX) platform since President Obama’s March 16 speech on financing for small businesses.

Another sign that a turnaround may have begun in the small business credit crunch, a major factor in layoffs in the current economy, is that loan approval indications in the SBLX platform increased more than 300 percent.

For further details, see the full press release from Edgeware Analytics. Sphere: Related Content