(Mr de Castries strongly denies that AXA needs to raise new capital).Mr van Rossum insists that it helps to be both a bank and an insurer in times of stockmarket turmoil, because, he says, you can compensate for business lost in one branch of retail activity with an increase in another.
As its top executive from 1975 to 1987 — when Bankers Trust was one of the nation's 10 largest banks — Mr. Brittain helped it recover from large real estate losses, sold branches, got out of retail banking and expanded what became a very lucrative merchant-banking business.
Every branch of the retail trade is, however, registering satisfactory sales during this year's pre-holiday season.
The agency issued 177 violations and collected $80,000 in fines, many from branches of well-known retail chains.
Company accounts would be used to disguise the payoffs, and some of the payoffs came in the form of several shipments of free granite, or coveted business arrangements with local branches of a "major retail corporation," reported to be Home Depot.
In a statement seen by the Financial Times it said it started "the process of establishing local country branches" of its main retail firm in Europe – called Amazon EU Sarl - more than two years ago.
And it has a network of retail branches in nearly every corner of the country.
Following the takeover of the Wachovia Corporation at the height of the financial crisis, it established a network of retail branches along both coasts.
Morgan estimated losses of about $400 million related to Hurricane Katrina in large part because of its significant concentration of retail branches on the Gulf Coast.
In recent years, the bank has poured millions of dollars into the program, which offers retirement advice and investment products through a vast network of retail branches.
