With the Congressional rejection of the Treasury bailout package lending from banks to small businesses has ground to a halt.
According to Forbes,"The Discover Small Business Watch index of economic confidence slipped to 74.6, down by 12.3 points from the prior month, representing the index’s second-lowest level since its inception in August 2006."
The sharp drop comes as banks have stopped lending to one another, larges businesses, consumers, and small businesses. Financial companies have reached the point where they can no longer figure out who has the ability to pay them back.
On top of the credit crisis, business customers at banks which have been taken over, especially Washington Mutual and Wachovia (WB) should assume that there will be significant lay-offs at these firms. Sorting out customer service will almost certainly cause months of confusion and difficulty for clients.
If there is a time to move to one of the most stable banks like Bank of America (BAC), it is now.
Douglas A. McIntyre
Credit Card Companies Are Doing Something Nuts
Credit card companies are at war. The biggest issuers are handing out free rewards and benefits to win the best customers.
It’s possible to find cards paying unlimited 1.5%, 2%, and even more today. That’s free money for qualified borrowers, and the type of thing that would be crazy to pass up. Those rewards can add up to thousands of dollars every year in free money, and include other benefits as well.
We’ve assembled some of the best credit cards for users today. Don’t miss these offers because they won’t be this good forever.
Flywheel Publishing has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Flywheel Publishing and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers.
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