While U.S. banks like Goldman, Sachs & Co. (NYSE:GS), J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) and Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE:WFC) chafe under the growing restrictions the government is placing on Troubled Asset Relief Program recipients, and some like Northern Trust Corp. (NASDAQ:NTRS) and U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) are rushing to pay back the Treasury's investment, outsiders looking in want to crawl under the cozy comfort of the government's bailout plan. Case in point: Canadian-based Oppenheimer Holdings Inc. (NYSE:OPY), which has asked its shareholders to approve a re-incorporation in Delaware, according to Bloomberg:
"Oppenheimer Holdings Inc., based in Toronto, asked shareholders to approve an incorporation switch to Delaware, which would make the firm more likely to qualify for the rescue funds, according to a March 13 proxy statement. Money from the Treasury's Troubled Asset Relief Program 'could assist us' in repurchasing securities from clients trapped when the $330 billion auction-rate market seized up, the company said in the filing."
Oppenheimer reportedly owes $930 million to investors who bought auction-rate securities.
And to think, Canadians claim their banks are better funded than U.S. firms. - Matthew Wurtzel
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See the story from Bloomberg
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See related story about Canadian banking from Dealscape
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