Banks pump billions to calm the markets

Fed joins global bid to ease credit crisis
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The Federal Reserve and central banks around the world yesterday took the extraordinary step of pumping more than $100 billion into financial markets riven by a credit crisis, the largest such intervention since the September 11 terrorism attacks.
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In a rare public statement, the Fed said it wanted to ensure financial markets had enough money to continue operating in an orderly fashion.


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"In current circumstances," the Fed said, banks "may experience unusual funding needs because of dislocations in money and credit markets."

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Financial markets are reacting seemingly overnight to the jarring end of an era of easy money, when higher-risk borrowers enjoyed nearly unfettered access to huge sums at low interest rates. The market for subprime mortgages, to people with less than perfect credit histories, cracked first and remains the most seriously impaired, but other types of credit such as corporate junk bonds and mortgages backing commercial property are also under duress.

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So far, the central bankers' strategy of rapid, severe intervention shows signs of working. Earlier yesterday, European stock markets posted losses of as much as 3 percent, and it appeared US markets would follow suit when the Dow Jones industrial average began the day with a 212-point decline. But as the Fed pumped money into the US system through the day, stocks began to rally, and the Dow finished the day down just 31.14 points, at 13,239.54. Despite the tremendous, sudden investor anxiety and wild market gyrations and losses, the Dow actually ended the week up -- just barely -- with a 0.4-percent gain.


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"Within the stock market there has been massive dislocation, and the Fed provided everyone a little room to unwind," said Kevin Cronin, chief investment officer at Putnam Investments in Boston. If lenders had been unable to continue providing credit, he said, then interest rates would have exploded, potentially leading to a widespread reduction in economic activity.


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The Fed "wanted to let the air out of the balloon," Cronin said.

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The Fed yesterday loaned $38 billion to US banks to help them finance credit and lending operations, on top of a similar $24 billion the US regulator provided Thursday. Earlier yesterday, central bankers in Europe, Japan, Asia, and Canada made similar moves.

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The central banks' actions enabled lenders to have enough money available to loan to investors to buy, sell, or hold securities as they would normally. Without such additional funds, a shortage of credit could cause markets to seize and prices to go haywire.

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"Central bankers did two things," said Art Hogan, chief market analyst at Jeffries & Co. in Boston. "They added much needed liquidity to the market and signaled that they stand at the ready for a system that may or may not need more help."

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More problems seem to arrive daily. Yesterday, shares of Countrywide Financial Corp. fell nearly 3 percent one day after the biggest US mortgage lender said credit problems among its own borrowers are worsening, and it anticipated more difficulty funding loans. Separately shares in Washington Mutual Inc., the big savings and loan, were down 2 percent a day after it said it faces risks from lower market liquidity.

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Yesterday's stock swings capped three weeks in which the Dow Jones industrial average often moved at triple-digit levels in each trading session. The turmoil reflects uncertainty about financial markets even though the economy itself appears to remain stable, according to economists and traders.

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"The fundamentals, underlying inflation, economic growth rates, US employment growth, are still robust," said Nariman Behravesh, chief economist at Global Insight of Waltham. "The markets are panicking a little, but it's still a financial story. As long as the central banks succeed in calming markets down, I don't see this spreading to the broader economy."

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The volatility still poses longer-term strategy questions for the Fed. One is whether to lower interest rates, even though this week Fed policy makers elected to keep their benchmark lending rate at 5.25 percent, arguing that inflation is a greater risk to the economy than the credit shortage. But by lowering its interest rate, the Fed would make it cheaper to borrow money. That would ease pressures on the real estate sector and other investments by, for example, lowering the overall cost of transactions such as buying a home or refinancing a mortgage.

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Richard Yamarone, chief economist at Argus Research in New York, said he suspects the Fed will simply try to hold the line on interest rates. He noted that in its statement to the markets yesterday the Fed made a point of mentioning the current interest rate of 5.25 percent.
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"They're saying to the markets, 'Listen, we're giving you some breathing room, but we're still sticking to our guns' " on the interest rates, Yamarone said.

E-Banks that Accept US Casino Players

Recently, the US Federal government banned online casinos from operating in America by making it illegal to transfer money to them through any US bank or payment system. As a result of this law, most of the popular online casino networks such as Party Gaming and PlayTech left the United States. Overnight, online casino players found themselves being chased by the Federal government. But, after a fortnight, the online casino industry came up with a solution and new online casinos started taking root. These began to operate under a different business umbrella, and by doing that, rendered the transfer of money to and from them legal. A major part of this was enlisting electronic banking systems that would accept this new clarification and start doing business with me. Listed in this article are the electronic banking systems that accept players from the United States that wish to play in online casinos. The Payment Systems You Can Use: 1, 2) MasterCard and Visa: The most popular credit cards in the world, you can use these for depositing money into your casino account. But, please note that the casinos do not deposit your winning through your credit card. They use one of the other electronic payment systems. This is also the biggest reason why you should refrain from using your personal credit cards today for gambling. 3, 4) Visa Delta, Visa Electron: These are debit cards that one can use to deposit cash into their casino account. By debit card, it means that the money you pay through the card, is immediately withdrawn from your bank account. This is a comfortable option, but here too, you cannot receive money into it. 5) Neteller: Based in the UK and traded on the London AIM Stock Exchange, this e-bank company is one of the major independent electronic banking entities in the world, and it allows players to transfer money to and from an online casino. 6) Neteller Instacash This is Neteller's version of the Debit Card, and, in fact, it is just like any other debit card with one difference. To use, InstaCash, you have to pay a small amount. But, most casinos will offer to pay this for you, so read their regulations. 7) EcoCard Based in the European Union, EcoCard offers a wider range of electronic banking solutions than the other e-banks. Other than the regular card and debit system, you can decide beforehand how to create a flexible financial account. Because they use a wide network of banks in Europe, transactions made through EcoCard are quick and efficient. 8) FirePay This e-banking system is solely web-based and carries out its transactions just like a debit card. You place cash into your FirePay account, and then, you can use that money to pay or deposit into your casino account. While it will not cost you a dime to open an account, you will be charged a minimal amount each time you transfer money from your bank account to FirePay. 9) Moneybookers All you need to open an account is an email address! This e-banking system uses transactions from your credit or debit card or your bank account to whichever company you wish to move your money to. Regulated in the UK and run by Gatcombe Park Ventures Limited, this is one of the relatively new e-finance companies that allow transferring money to online casinos. 10) eWalletXpress: Owned and run by Navaho Networks Inc, eWalletXpress is a new electronic payment system that has been created to answer the need for US players to transfer funds to online casinos. 11) 900Pay: This is a completely different e-banking system. Instead of charging your bank account or your credit card, 900Pay charges your telephone bill for all your financial transactions. This is one of the fastest methods of electronic payment because you do not have to go through a long and detailed sign up process. And, if you were wondering, this does work to fund your casino account.