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Email not displaying correctly? View it in your browser. Obama Proposes New Limits on Big Lenders In public remarks Thursday, President Obama said he wants to give federal regulators the power to restrict the size of the nation's largest financial institutions and the scope of their risk-taking ventures, such as investing in hedge funds. The president says the financial system is still operating under pre-crisis rules and it's time for reform. Banking industry lobbyists are gearing up to hold their ground on this one, but the president says he's ready for Wall Street's opposition. "If these folks want a fight, it's a fight I'm willing to have," Obama said. Surge in Short Sale Requests Unlikely to Impact Housing Market Although short sales are likely to increase in 2010, the jump in these transactions is unlikely to have any real impact on the housing market, according to a new study by Housing Predictor. While more at-risk homeowners are turning to short sales as an alternative to foreclosure, Housing Predictor says the small number of short sales that are actually approved by banks represent less than 1 percent of all homes facing foreclosure. Bair Says CRE Woes Aren't Confined to Small Banks For months, analysts and industry experts have said the downturn in the commercial real estate (CRE) sector won't be enough to send the financial system into a second crisis - that it won't be the dreaded "next shoe to drop" because exposure is isolated to smaller, regional banks. But FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair says that's not an accurate picture. In fact, the agency's data shows CRE noncurrent and charge-off rates are higher at banks with over one billion dollars in assets than at community banks. Mortgage Banking Pushes Wells Fargo to Q4 Profit Wells Fargo & Company reported fourth quarter diluted earnings of $394 million, or $.08 per share. The banks' numbers blew analysts' expectations out of the water - they were looking for a loss of $.01 cent a share. Wells Fargo's results got a big boost from its mortgage business, which produced $3.4 billion in income in the fourth quarter alone. You are receving this email because you opted in at our website dsnews.com or attended a Five Star Conference. Unsubscribe roballey.434-974-5586@blogger.com from this list. Corporate Office: DS News 1909 Woodall Rodgers Suite 300 Dallas, TX 75201 Add us to your address book Washington Bureau: 1101 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Suite 600 Washington, D.C. 20004 Copyright (C) 2009 DS News All rights reserved. Forward this email to a friend Update your profile QUICK LINKS DSNews.com DS News' Red Book DS News' Black Book 2009 Five Star Conference DARE