2112 Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 No, but I have read up on why Texas has so few home grown banks versus say, North Carolina. Texas for decades had very restrictive banking regulations. For instance, Texas banks could not offer branch banking, and could not branch into other states. This kept Texas banks from growing. The S&L scandal in the 80s also wiped out 9 of the 10 largest Texas banks. Only Frost Bank survived without folding or being swallowed by other banks.The result is that while other banks grew nationwide, Texas banks could only grow larger by merging with the big out of state banks, and this only happened after the legislature brought Texas banking laws into the 20th Century in the 1990s. As such, virtually no Texas banks are ranked in the top 75 largest banks in the US. No Texas city is a banking capital, because Texas is not a banking capital.North Carolina, in contrast, had forward thinking regulations, allowing their banks to grow outside their borders. Banks like Wachovia, which grew fat with tobacco company profits, was able to lend that money anywhere, allowing it to grow. Texas banks, even though flush with oil money, could not. South Dakota drew several banks by virtually eliminating usury rates on credit cards. Citibank and other massive credit card banks moved there to take advantage of this gold mine. Other states eventually followed suit, leading to the crime that is credit card interest rates today.None of this has to do with where the Federal Reserve is located. All of it has to do with the foresight of state legislatures in crafting banking laws. Note, this is as short of an overview as one can write on Texas banking, but it illustrates why Texas is not a leader in banking.Your witness couselor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
houstonfella Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 Ouch! I do remember the downturn where banks folded in supposedly RICH Texas. Red, you are a wealth of knowledge about these things. I should never argue with you, but appreciate your honesty and integrity. I am happy Comerica is coming to Texas, particuarly Dallas and hopefully downtown Dallas. Houston already has so many big co's that it would be fairly small potatoes here. Anywho..... did you get my account set up Red??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H-Town Man Posted March 11, 2007 Share Posted March 11, 2007 No, but I have read up on why Texas has so few home grown banks versus say, North Carolina. Texas for decades had very restrictive banking regulations. For instance, Texas banks could not offer branch banking, and could not branch into other states. This kept Texas banks from growing. The S&L scandal in the 80s also wiped out 9 of the 10 largest Texas banks. Only Frost Bank survived without folding or being swallowed by other banks.The result is that while other banks grew nationwide, Texas banks could only grow larger by merging with the big out of state banks, and this only happened after the legislature brought Texas banking laws into the 20th Century in the 1990s. As such, virtually no Texas banks are ranked in the top 75 largest banks in the US. No Texas city is a banking capital, because Texas is not a banking capital. North Carolina, in contrast, had forward thinking regulations, allowing their banks to grow outside their borders. Banks like Wachovia, which grew fat with tobacco company profits, was able to lend that money anywhere, allowing it to grow. Texas banks, even though flush with oil money, could not. South Dakota drew several banks by virtually eliminating usury rates on credit cards. Citibank and other massive credit card banks moved there to take advantage of this gold mine. Other states eventually followed suit, leading to the crime that is credit card interest rates today. None of this has to do with where the Federal Reserve is located. All of it has to do with the foresight of state legislatures in crafting banking laws. Note, this is as short of an overview as one can write on Texas banking, but it illustrates why Texas is not a leader in banking. Now I'm wishing I hadn't wasted that pedant comment on Niche... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
houstonfella Posted March 11, 2007 Share Posted March 11, 2007 Now I'm wishing I hadn't wasted that pedant comment on Niche... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedScare Posted March 11, 2007 Share Posted March 11, 2007 Now I'm wishing I hadn't wasted that pedant comment on Niche... touche. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FoUTASportscaster Posted March 11, 2007 Share Posted March 11, 2007 The S&L scandal in the 80s also wiped out 9 of the 10 largest Texas banks. Only Frost Bank survived without folding or being swallowed by other banks.This event hit downtown Dallas particularly hard. MBank, formerly known as the Mercantile Bank, just completed a new HQ now known as the Bank One Center. They had just moved from a 1.3 million square foot facility to their new 1.6 million square foot facility in '87 when the economy crashed and they were gobbled up in '89. Their former complex went vacant five years later.Republic bank occupied a 3 building 1.7 million square foot facility when their bank was absorbed. Dallas Federal Savings had an HQ in DTD when they collasped.Bright Bank was a savings and loan that collapsed and put a building out of every day use.While I don't know that it was connected to the '80's crash, Dallas National Bank also had a HQ building that went vacant.But that tragedy that hurt downtown then has helped it now, as all of the above buildings are either undergoing renovation or are now reopened for residential, retail or hotel use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
citykid09 Posted March 11, 2007 Share Posted March 11, 2007 Shouldn't this have it's own thread somewhere,or are you playing the "Sooooo....We have one Too" game? No, I just wanted to add that Texas got another one also.. And just so you know, Houston just lost Halliburton's Headquarters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
houstonmacbro Posted March 11, 2007 Share Posted March 11, 2007 I just read about that (Halliburton moving headquarters to Dubai). Watching some of the structures (skyscrapers and buildings, islands in the middle of the ocean, etc.) that are going up, it's not hard to imagine Dubai being the real energy capital of the world. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dallasboi Posted March 12, 2007 Share Posted March 12, 2007 No, I just wanted to add that Texas got another one also.. And just so you know, Houston just lost Halliburton's Headquarters. ok....Just asking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpaceCity Posted March 14, 2007 Share Posted March 14, 2007 That's great that Comerica is moving to Dallas. Big D has a diverse economy. However, I wish they were moving more jobs to Texas. It almost sounds like just a PR move. Although times in Houston are great when there is an oil boom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TxDave Posted March 25, 2007 Share Posted March 25, 2007 I just read about that (Halliburton moving headquarters to Dubai). Watching some of the structures (skyscrapers and buildings, islands in the middle of the ocean, etc.) that are going up, it's not hard to imagine Dubai being the real energy capital of the world.This move is a significant event. Although it will not change much about Hallibutron's operations in Houston, it is a clear indicator of where that industry's focus will be in the (near?) future. How long until other companies start to follow, and possibly take more of their employees with them?Houston's economy should be robust enough to adjust to this shift, but it is important to not be complacent with any "Energy Capital of the World" titles - that may be changing...This news is relevant to this topic because, although Dallas is no longer a "Banking" or "Financial" capital, it is still a significant portion of the economy, which may have helped lure a bank headquarters. Perhaps Houston may be headed for a similar situation with the Energy industry.Any judgment between these two cities should be made cautiously. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Analog Posted March 25, 2007 Share Posted March 25, 2007 I think "energy capital of the world" is a bit of an overstatment for Houton. Maybe at one point Houston was the oil (and natural gas) capitol of the world, but hardly the "energy capitol" in the strictest sense. How much coal does Houston produce for the world? How much electricity? How much nuclear power? Solar? Geo-thermal? Hydro? There was a quote in one of the articles about the move of Halliburton that said, "There's no oil left in Texas". Relatively speaking, that's a correct statement. "Energy" is a very broad word.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trae Posted March 25, 2007 Share Posted March 25, 2007 Halliburton is not moving for the last time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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