Both houses of the California State Legislature have passed a bill which would, among other things, include the card industry's data security standards into state law for the first time and provide credit unions with a means of recouping their losses when a retailer or processing institution fails to implement...

Countrywide Financial announced late Friday that it would layoff as many as 12,000 workers, nearly 20% of its workforce, in an effort to trim costs in a down mortgage market. IndyMac Bancorp, another large lender also said it would trim 1,000 employees, or 10% of staff to save money.

NCUA has determined that in cases where a state chartered, federally insured credit union is merging with a state chartered, federally insured mutual bank, the merging credit union does not have to follow the notification or ballot procedures that a CU would otherwise have to follow in a CU-to-bank charter...