| Probe recovers $780,000 from investment fraud
Missouri Secretary of State Robin Carnahan was in Springfield Thursday to announce the completion of an investigation resulting in the recovery of more than $780,000 in restitution from a firm whose former employee defrauded Missouri investors.
Carnahan�s Commissioner of Securities, Matt Kitzi, entered into a consent order on Nov. 9 with Investment Centers of America ICA, the former employer of a Joplin-area investment adviser, Mark L. Henry, who defrauded investors out of more than $800,000. The order will recover over $1 million in restitution, fines and penalties.
Henry was a Missouri-registered agent and investment adviser for ICA from October 1994 until September 2005. After his termination, Henry used a personal bank account to fraudulently continue conducting business as a representative of Investment Centers of America.
In Briefs
HCM CITY � Asia Commercial Bank signed a memorandum of understanding yesterday with US-based AIG General Insurance Viet Nam to distribute its insurance products. ACB customers will initially be offered travel and personal accident insurance, before more personal and corporate insurance products are added. AIG began operations in Viet Nam in 2006, offering products to both individual and corporate customers. ANZ launches deposit-free credit card service HA NOI � ANZ Bank today launches its Visa Credit Card in Viet Nam. Owners of the new card will receive interest-free credit for up to 45 days, with the ability to shop online and over the phone. Card applicants are not required to have an account with the bank and the card will be offered without the need for a deposit, ANZ general manager of personal banking, Philip Crouch, said.
U.S. pushes Israel to honor agreement on settlements
JERUSALEM - The United States is pressuring Israel to meet a longstanding obligation to freeze all West Bank settlement construction ahead of a high-profile Mideast conference, rejecting Israel's stance that it be allowed to continue building in existing communities, Israeli officials said yesterday. The officials said Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's cabinet would discuss the settlement issue today, though it remained unclear whether the ministers would endorse any changes in policy. Washington has been urging Israel to make a series of gestures to the Palestinians ahead of the Mideast peace conference, which is expected to take place next week in Annapolis, Md. Key Arab governments are to announce Friday whether they will attend the conference, an Arab League official said yesterday. Diplomats familiar with the governments' deliberations hinted that despite reservations, they probably would attend.
British PM Outlines UK Foreign Policy Priorities
Gordon Brown has spoken at length on Britain's foreign policy priorities in his first address as PM at the Lord Mayor's Banquet. Mr Brown took the opportunity of his appearance at the traditional annual event to stress the importance of the UK's relationship with the US and to call for Iran to resolve its differences with the international community on the issue of nuclear development. Mr Brown also said there was a great opportunity to forge a stronger relationship between the US and the EU following the appointment of new administrations, led by Nicolas Sarkozy and Angela Merkel respectively, in France and Germany. .
Wachovia, SunTrust adopt mobile banking
Customers of Wachovia and SunTrust banks are now able to view account information, pay bills, check balances and transfer funds using their cellular telephone handsets. The "mobile banking" platform was announced this week by AT&T, which is working with Firethorn Holdings LLC and its partner CheckFree Corp. to offer the service. "The ability to perform banking functions using a wireless handset is attractive for people who need to make financial decisions on the go -- business travelers, college students and anyone who desires the flexibility that wireless delivers," Mark Collins, vice president, Consumer Data, for AT&T's wireless division, said in a statement. The mobile banking application can be downloaded on more than 30 of AT&T's handsets, the company said.
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