J.P. Morgan, BofA, Citi among banks sued by Fannie

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Bank of America Corp. BAC +0.14%  , Citigroup Inc. C +0.31%  and J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. JPM +0.35%  are among the banks that Fannie Mae FNMA +5.88%  filed charges against Thursday.

Alleging that they manipulated a key interest rate known as the Libor. The lawsuit also names four banks that have settled previous Libor-related charge.

Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC RBS +0.64%  and Dutch bank Rabobank.  JPM.

Mobile Payments: Plastic is so Passé

Mobile payments refer to payment services that are made through mobile devices. This may become the next disruptive technology, based on the growth in the number of mobile wallet apps globally and the adoption of mobile payment methods by large businesses like Starbucks Corporation (SBUX) which has been an early adopter of this technology.

Mobile Payments Growth

Technology research firm Gartner, Inc. (IT) estimated that the total value of mobile payments exceeded $170 billion worldwide in 2012 and predicts that they will grow fourfold to more than $700 billion by 2017. Gartner has also estimated that the total users of mobile payments will more than double from an estimated 212 million in 2012 to almost 450 million in 2016. read more about Mobile Payments.

Card Services Industry – Plastic Money Plays

The US card services industry comprises companies that process credit and debit card transactions on behalf of merchants and card issuing companies (such as banks). These companies also facilitate global fund transfers through their payment networks and merchants and financial insitutions pay them a fee for these services.

The industry is dominated by four major companies that process payments and offer value-added services to their clients. These companies’ primary source of revenues is the volume of total payments made through their networks. A small percentage of the total value of payments processed is taken by card companies in the form of transaction fees, charged at a flat rate, and a discount fee, which is charged at a variable rate based on the value of the transaction. read more about Plastic Money.

J.P. Morgan in tentative $13 billion probe deal

The general outline of the agreement was struck late Friday in a phone call among Attorney General Eric Holder, Associate Attorney General Tony West and J.P. Morgan’s general counsel, Stephen Cutler, according to the newspaper.

The settlement has not been completed and some issues remain to be resolved, including the final wording of the agreement, the Journal said.

The deal not resolve a continuing criminal probe of the J.P. Morgan’s JPM +0.17% conduct by federal prosecutors in Sacramento, Calif., the Journal said, citing an unnamed source. read more.

Citigroup adjusted profit hit by bond trading slowdown

(Reuters) - Citigroup Inc (NYS:C) reported a marginal fall in adjusted quarterly profit from ongoing businesses after the Federal Reserve's decision to continue its bond-buying program for longer than expected slowed trading by clients.

Citigroup shares were down 1 percent at $49.10 in premarket trading as the earnings fell short of market expectations. read more.