- Among the discussions taking place in bank boardrooms of late: When will Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) show up to claim our margins? Maybe not too much longer, according to the WSJ, which reports Amazon as in early-stage talks to create a checking-account-like product.
- The product, says the story, would be focused on those not yet swept up in the traditional financial services industry, but wouldn't include Amazon actually becoming a bank. Walmart (NYSE:WMT) attempted the bank route 20 years ago, but the industry got then-Fed chief Alan Greenspan to shoot that down.
- Amazon, of course, has millions of customers, access to cheap capital, and tons of data, making it a potentially fearsome competitor to the banking industry. The good news for lenders: The company for now appears to be trying to get its foot in the door as partner, rather than competitor.
- Amazon a few months ago asked a number of banks for proposals about a hybrid-checking account. Among pitches currently being mulled are ones from Capital One (NYSE:COF) and JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM).
- Other names of interest: Bank of America (NYSE:BAC), Citigroup (NYSE:C), Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC), U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB), PNC Financial (NYSE:PNC), KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY), Regions Financial (NYSE:RF).
- ETFs: XLF, FAS, FAZ, KRE, VFH, KBE, UYG, FNCL, IYF, BTO, IAT, IYG, KBWB, RYF, QABA, KBWR, FXO, SEF, FINU, DPST, RWW, FINZ, WDRW, JHMF, FAZZ, FTXO, FNCF
- Now read: JPMorgan Chase (JPM) Investor Presentation - Slideshow
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