By J. Baden Allain
MR. NEVILLE CENAC that Master of the written word (no apologies Lambirds) and colleague Mr. Evans Calderon have written eloquently about banks.
Let me add to these observations:
Libor, the London Interbank offered rate is the average interest rate estimated by leading banks in London that the average leading bank would be charged if borrowing from other banks. Or, as Mr.Mervyn King, later Sir Mervyn King, the former Governor of the Bank of England stated before the Treasury Select Committee “the rate at which banks don’t lend to each other.”
Member banks are international in scope and include Barclays Bank, Royal Bank of Canada, Deutsche Bank. The U.K controls Libor through laws made in the U.K. Parliament.
In 2008 the Wall Street Journal released a study suggesting that banks might have understated borrowing costs they reported for Libor during the 2008 credit crunch.
The Financial Times, the B.B.C. and Reuters have reported that Libor manipulation had been common since, perhaps, 1991.
In June 2012 Barclays was fined $200m by the Commodity Fixture Trading Commission, $160m by the United States Department of Justice and $595m by the Financial Services Authority for attempted manipulation of Libor rates
In July 2012 the breadth of the scandal was evident and various programmes attempted to explain the importance of the scandal. In that same month the U.K. Serious Fraud Squad opened a criminal investigation into the attempted manipulation of interest rates.
Fintan O’Toole in his article in the Observer of July 2012 quoted Vince Cable then Business Secretary in the Conservative Government, as saying that “greed and corruption pervades substantial parts of the banking system” and he urged shareholders in the U.K. banks to rise up and purge their companies of corrupt executives who had allowed systemic abuse to take root in the banking system.
In July 2012 Bob Diamond, Chief Executive Officer of Barclays resigned; he had been taking home almost $100m since 2006.
And the B.B.C. on 9th June 2015 stated the Deutsche chiefs had resigned over the Libor scandal and the bank fined $2.5b.
We turn to registration of Real Rights. Art. 8028 of the Civil Code states the registration of real rights, or the renewal thereof, may be cancelled with the consent of the parties, or in virtue of a judgement from which there is no appeal,
The acquittances of a debt implies a consent to its registration being cancelled.
A Notary who executes a total or partial discharge of a hypothec is bound to cause the same to be registered, or is liable for the damage caused by his default.
The creditor is bound to see that the discharge is registered, and is responsible for any costs that may be incurred in consequence of non-registration and he cannot be compelled to grant a discharge unless sufficient sum is placed in his hand to pay for the registration and transmission.
But what is the Lucian system?
A friend, not a client because the banks make sure that only their lawyers get bills of sale and mortgages, had his salary sent to a bank which then deducted $1,000 a month from this salary. Even after paying all sums due and owing the bank was still deducting over $1,000 for about four months. Of course his money was refunded with the usual apologies.
A 90 year old dear lady took a loan for $20,000 in about 1992 and had paid all sums due and owing. A friend informed that dear lady that a search at the Land Registry revealed that she was still indebted to the bank. On receiving instructions the usual procedures were set in motion. The bank manager was phoned at 8.15 a.m. and given all relevant details and promised to follow up and call. At 9.30 p.m. that same day the Secretary was supplied with all relevant details. Not a reply. Three days later a call was made to the bank’s head office. Three or four hours later good news repaid patience. The Radiation was signed.
Should the bank not have notified the customer of over 40 years that she was no longer indebted to them? And advised her to radiate the mortgage.
Recently a caution was placed over the property of a customer. A radiation had been registered in the Registry of Deeds and Mortgages some years ago but not at the Land Registry. Over $1m property was involved. A radiation was finally signed after some hale casse.
Students’ Loans
Without prejudice to the avalanche of scholarships being offered to impecunious students to study overseas can any Administration or Government say without veracity that it is genuinely interested in the education of the ‘yuff’ of this country.
One example may suffice:
The amount of loan applied for $80,000
Loan disbursed plus interest repayable 10 years
Monthly installments $1,062
Risk premium $1,230
Vise fee $660
Appraisal fee $410
If the applicant is a female student is the bank suggesting to the student that she should ‘jametise’ herself to service the loan, remain overseas and fail, refuse or neglect to repay the loan?
Thank God for CREDIT UNIONS!