Fleet Financial Group

Long Beach-based AFSA is the holding company for the nation's largest independent student loan processor. Terms of the purchase were not disclosed. AFSA currently services $3.2 billion of student loans, said Robert W. Lougee Jr., Fleet spokesman. Providence, R.I.-based Fleet, the fourth-largest mortgage banker in the nation acquired AFSA as part of its plan to diversify its holdings, said J. Terrence Murray, Fleet chairman. Fleet purchased AFSA's stock in a cash transaction Dec. 22, said Murray.

Fleet Financial Group Inc. said it agreed to buy money manager Columbia Management Co. for as much as $600 million in cash, as the bank moves to expand its money management business. The acquisition, which was expected, gives the Boston-based bank an additional $22 billion in assets to manage, including about $6 billion in no-load mutual funds.

Reflecting a continuing contraction in the mortgage banking industry, Plaza Home Mortgage Corp. said Tuesday that its directors have agreed to sell the company for $120 million in cash to Fleet Financial Group Inc. The acquisition of fast-growing Plaza, based in Santa Ana, would make Fleet the nation's fourth-largest mortgage provider, with $13.4 billion in loans made through July this year. It would be the nation's second-largest mortgage servicer, billing and collecting payments on $88.

Fleet Financial Group's mortgage subsidiary will pay nearly $4 million to African American and Latino clients to settle allegations it charged them more for home loans than comparably qualified whites, the Justice Department announced Tuesday. Fleet agreed to establish a $3.8-million fund to compensate 600 minority clients who received mortgages from branches in Westbury, N.Y., and Woodbridge, N.J., between Aug. 1, 1993, and June 1, 1994.

Teledyne Inc. said it purchased Stellram Group, a maker of high-precision milling, boring and drilling systems, strengthening its position in the European machine tool market. Terms were not disclosed . . . Texas Instruments Inc. and Korea's Samsung Electronics Co. said they are suing each other for patent infringement after talks to renew a semiconductor license agreement broke down. . . . General Motors Corp. said it is changing the name of its GMC Truck division to GMC. . . .

The subsidiary, Denver-based Security Pacific Mortgage, was sold to Fleet Financial Group, a bank holding company headquartered in Providence, R.I. Security Pacific acquired the unit in 1973 and will keep its commercial real estate portfolio while selling the residential mortgages to the Rhode Island company. Fleet said the purchase will increase its $14.5-billion mortgage servicing portfolio by $2.5 billion, making Fleet the nation's third-largest mortgage banking company.

In a combination that would create the nation's ninth-largest banking firm, Fleet Financial Group of Providence, R.I., said Tuesday that it has reached a definitive agreement to buy Boston-based Shawmut National Corp. for $3.7 billion, or $30 a share, in stock. The merger, approved Monday by the boards of both banks, is as much about survival in the tough new world of financial services as it is about New England's biggest bank getting bigger.

Fleet Financial Group Inc. said it agreed to buy money manager Columbia Management Co. for as much as $600 million in cash, as the bank moves to expand its money management business. The acquisition, which was expected, gives the Boston-based bank an additional $22 billion in assets to manage, including about $6 billion in no-load mutual funds.

Financial giants Glendale Federal Bank and Fleet Financial Group have settled accusations that they withheld too much money from mortgage customers for tax and insurance payments, attorneys said Wednesday. The settlements, expected to return more than $90 million to customers, are the latest to result from lawsuits contending that many big lenders required excessive payments into escrow accounts.

Fleet Financial Group's mortgage subsidiary will pay nearly $4 million to African American and Latino clients to settle allegations it charged them more for home loans than comparably qualified whites, the Justice Department announced Tuesday. Fleet agreed to establish a $3.8-million fund to compensate 600 minority clients who received mortgages from branches in Westbury, N.Y., and Woodbridge, N.J., between Aug. 1, 1993, and June 1, 1994.

AMR, the parent of American Airlines, on Wednesday reported the biggest first-quarter profit in its history, a result fueled by higher ticket prices and fuller airplanes. Trans World Airlines' first-quarter loss narrowed 70% as its revenue increased and the company started flying some new routes. Fort Worth-based AMR earned $157 million, or $2.02 per share, for the three months ended March 31. That compares with earnings of $37 million, or 48 cents per share, for the same period a year earlier.

Teledyne Inc. said it purchased Stellram Group, a maker of high-precision milling, boring and drilling systems, strengthening its position in the European machine tool market. Terms were not disclosed . . . Texas Instruments Inc. and Korea's Samsung Electronics Co. said they are suing each other for patent infringement after talks to renew a semiconductor license agreement broke down. . . . General Motors Corp. said it is changing the name of its GMC Truck division to GMC. . . .

In a combination that would create the nation's ninth-largest banking firm, Fleet Financial Group of Providence, R.I., said Tuesday that it has reached a definitive agreement to buy Boston-based Shawmut National Corp. for $3.7 billion, or $30 a share, in stock. The merger, approved Monday by the boards of both banks, is as much about survival in the tough new world of financial services as it is about New England's biggest bank getting bigger.

Reflecting a continuing contraction in the mortgage banking industry, Plaza Home Mortgage Corp. said Tuesday that it will be acquired for $120 million in cash by Fleet Financial Group. The acquisition of fast-growing Plaza, based in Santa Ana, would make Fleet the nation's fourth-largest mortgage provider, with $13.4 billion in loans made through July. It would be the nation's second-largest mortgage servicer, billing and collecting payments on $88.2 billion in loans.

Reflecting a continuing contraction in the mortgage banking industry, Plaza Home Mortgage Corp. said Tuesday that its directors have agreed to sell the company for $120 million in cash to Fleet Financial Group Inc. The acquisition of fast-growing Plaza, based in Santa Ana, would make Fleet the nation's fourth-largest mortgage provider, with $13.4 billion in loans made through July this year. It would be the nation's second-largest mortgage servicer, billing and collecting payments on $88.

Financial giants Glendale Federal Bank and Fleet Financial Group have settled accusations that they withheld too much money from mortgage customers for tax and insurance payments, attorneys said Wednesday. The settlements, expected to return more than $90 million to customers, are the latest to result from lawsuits contending that many big lenders required excessive payments into escrow accounts.

Reflecting a continuing contraction in the mortgage banking industry, Plaza Home Mortgage Corp. said Tuesday that it will be acquired for $120 million in cash by Fleet Financial Group. The acquisition of fast-growing Plaza, based in Santa Ana, would make Fleet the nation's fourth-largest mortgage provider, with $13.4 billion in loans made through July. It would be the nation's second-largest mortgage servicer, billing and collecting payments on $88.2 billion in loans.

AMR, the parent of American Airlines, on Wednesday reported the biggest first-quarter profit in its history, a result fueled by higher ticket prices and fuller airplanes. Trans World Airlines' first-quarter loss narrowed 70% as its revenue increased and the company started flying some new routes. Fort Worth-based AMR earned $157 million, or $2.02 per share, for the three months ended March 31. That compares with earnings of $37 million, or 48 cents per share, for the same period a year earlier.

Long Beach-based AFSA is the holding company for the nation's largest independent student loan processor. Terms of the purchase were not disclosed. AFSA currently services $3.2 billion of student loans, said Robert W. Lougee Jr., Fleet spokesman. Providence, R.I.-based Fleet, the fourth-largest mortgage banker in the nation acquired AFSA as part of its plan to diversify its holdings, said J. Terrence Murray, Fleet chairman. Fleet purchased AFSA's stock in a cash transaction Dec. 22, said Murray.

The subsidiary, Denver-based Security Pacific Mortgage, was sold to Fleet Financial Group, a bank holding company headquartered in Providence, R.I. Security Pacific acquired the unit in 1973 and will keep its commercial real estate portfolio while selling the residential mortgages to the Rhode Island company. Fleet said the purchase will increase its $14.5-billion mortgage servicing portfolio by $2.5 billion, making Fleet the nation's third-largest mortgage banking company.