From The Federal State’s house organ, The Washington Post
:
“We don’t want to raise fees for our customers, but unfortunately regulation is forcing us to do it,” a Chase spokesman said. “As a result, some customers may end up unbanked.”
“Banks have been scrambling to find new sources of revenue after a wave of legislation that brought changes to their consumer products. The new rules limit interest rate increases on credit cards, banned many overdraft charges and reduced the amount of money banks receive each time a debit card is swiped. The last move alone could cost Bank of America $2.3 billion a year in revenue, the company has said.”
“According to a recent study by Bankrate.com, the percentage of financial institutions offering free checking accounts dropped to 65 percent in 2010 from 76 percent the previous year. The minimum balance to avoid those fees on non-interest checking accounts rose 34 percent to $249.50.”