GE Posts Fourth Straight Profit Rise as Industrial Orders Gain [Bloomberg]
General Electric Co. (GE) posted a fourth straight quarter of profit growth, beating analysts’ estimates, as equipment orders increased, and boosted the dividend for the third time since July. First-quarter profit from continuing operations rose 58 percent to $3.58 billion, or 33 cents, excluding pension results, up from $2.26 billion, or 20 cents, a year earlier, GE said. That exceeded the average estimate of 28 cents a share from analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.
Regulators Serve Up Alphabet Soup [WSJ]
The financial overhaul of the 1930s first brought in a slew of acronyms now part of today’s financial fabric—FDIC, SEC, FHLB and FHA. But the acronyms created by the recent Dodd-Frank Act means anyone hoping to understand the biggest financial overhaul in almost 80 years will need a language tutor.
Wells’ Stumpf Mum on CFO Departure [TSC]
Wells Fargo […] CEO John Stumpf wouldn’t answer questions Wednesday on the departure of Howard Atkins, the bank’s former financial chief, preferring instead to focus on the bank’s dividend and buyback. “That is so yesterday. We have a terrific CFO; we are going forward and we are looking to the future,” said Stumpf in the bank’s conference call Wednesday.
Treasury pays IRS a backhanded compliment on its tax-season performance [WaPo]
“On the one hand, the IRS is to be commended for its sharpened focus on fraud interception and prevention,” said Inspector General J. Russell George. “On the other, its efforts to prevent improper credits still leave much to be desired, and customer service problems continue.”
Supreme Court cancels bail to former Satyam auditors [NDTV]
The Supreme Court has cancelled the bails granted to PricewaterhouseCoopers partner Subramani Gopalakrishnan and Satyam’s internal auditor V. S. Prabhakar Gupta, directing them to surrender by April 30. A bench comprising Justice P. Sathasivam and Justice B. S. Chauhan cancelled their bail and directed them to surrender within this period, failing which, the central investigative agency will take steps to arrest them.
Calif. court freezes assets of TV’s ‘tax lady’ [AP]
A California court froze the assets and appointed a receiver Wednesday to run the business operated by Roni Deutch, a nationally known tax lawyer who gained a measure of fame on late-night television commercials. Sacramento Superior Court Superior Court Judge Shelleyanne Chang ordered Deutch to appear in court June 10 for a hearing to decide if she should be fined and jailed for criminal contempt of court. She acted after the California attorney general said Deutch shredded documents and failed to promptly repay her clients in violation of a court order.
FASB, IASB Want Feedback on Convergence Burden, Timeline [JofA]
FASB and the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) posted a survey online to collect views from users about the time and effort that will be involved in adopting several new standards and when those standards should be effective. The boards are seeking further input on these issues because, they said in a press release, a request for comments in a document released last October drew a “limited number of responses” from users and, for FASB, private entities.
