Keywords: US Bancorp, Richard Davis, SWIFT, RAKBANK, Bank Of Muscat

"If just the big banks oppose it, it will be a problem."
US Bancorp CEO Richard Davis on banks presenting a united front to stop regulators' breakup efforts, irrespective of size.

The following are notes from our Monday morning meeting.

US budget deficit for October-April 2013 fell 47% to $489b, due to a 16% jump in income tax revenues, with corporate income taxes rising 22%.

According to SWIFT, France now ranks fourth in Rmb payments volume after the UK, Singapore and Taiwan, following a 249% growth from last year.

ATM transactions value in Kenya increased 12.37% to $1.37b in the first nine months of 2012 despite mobile money growth as Kenyans remain predominantly cash-based.

A global cyber crime ring stole $45m from UAE's RAKBANK and Oman's Bank of Muscat by hacking into credit card processing firms in one of the biggest cyber bank heists.

South Korean banks’ combined earnings fell 45% to $1.64t in Q1 2013, as their interest-based income declined.

According to Moody's, China’s payment cards penetration rate increased to 56% in 2012 from 31% in 2008, due to increased retail spending by the country’s burgeoning middle class.

13,000 local businesses in Vietnam closed in Q1 2013 as consumer spending slowed, with retail sales growing 11.8%, the slowest pace in eight years.

Islamic banks in Indonesia notched 4.9% market share in Q1 2013 for the first time ever, with asset growth rising 37.8% to $22.1b.

India’s public sector banks suspended 15 employees and took action against 16 others after a media sting operation named 23 banks in large-scale money laundering allegations.

Asian Banker Research found number of ATMs in Australia grew only 1.2% in 2012, compared to 4.8% in 2011 and 6.1% in 2010. Click here for more.