American Banker

''American Banker'' is a Manhattan-based trade publication covering the financial services industry. Originally a daily newspaper, the print edition ceased publication in 2016, with an online edition continuing to be updated. The first issue of ''American Banker'' was published in 1885, though it has been considered a continuation of the earlier ''Thompson's Bank Note Reporter'', a bank note reporter which began publication in 1842.

Although often confused with the American Bankers Association or other industry trade groups, ''American Banker'' is unaffiliated with any portion of the banking industry.

History

''American Banker'' claims descent from ''Thompson's Bank Note Reporter'', a periodical published by John Thompson. For this reason, ''American Banker''s masthead gives a founding date of 1836, though the best available evidence suggests that Johnson's paper began publication in 1842. During the free banking era, ''Thompson's Bank Reporter'' was the most widely read and trusted of the several dozen bank note reporters in print—a genre of periodical which published information about the market value of the notes printed by each of the hundreds of banks spread across North America, as well as up to date descriptions of counterfeit bills in circulation. In the mid-1860s, the traditional function of a bank note reporter became obsolete as a uniform national paper currency came to be adopted across the country; for this reason, the character of ''Thompson's Bank Note Reporter'' shifted toward that of a "bank directory". Around the same time, John Thompson sold the paper. It continued to change hands a number of times over the following twenty years, and its reputation declined. In 1884–1885, the paper was the subject of a scandal when it was found to have been attempting to blackmail banks across the country with threats of disparaging their reputation; the paper's publisher, L. P. Haver, ultimately avoided prison time by agreeing to cease publishing the paper.

In 1885, Charles David Steurer, who had been managing the printing of ''Thompson's Bank Note Reporter'' for some time, founded a publishing house, Stumpf & Steurer, with friend Anthony Stumpf. They launched ''American Bank Reporter'', a bank directory similar to the latest incarnation of ''Thompson's'', as well as ''American Banker'', a weekly financial newspaper. ''American Banker'' became a daily newspaper in 1899.

The Otis years, ca. 1910-1983

Members of the Otis family of Boston purchased the newspaper and its sister publication, '' Bond Buyer'', around 1910, and for several decades it remained a family-owned enterprise. Charles Otis, a former president of ''The Wall Street Journal'' and its parent company, Dow Jones & Company, became president and publisher in 1913 and remained in that role until his death in 1944. In 1936, Charles Otis announced the newspaper was marking 100 years of continuous publication by producing a century edition. In 1976, the newspaper's management was overhauled. Willard S. Rappleye Jr., a former ''Time'' magazine editor was dismissed after 13 years at the helm. ''American Banker''s president, Edward F. McDougal, resigned in protest, and financial editor Ben Weberman also resigned. William S.Shanks, president and minority owner of ''Bond Buyer'', was named president of ''American Banker''. A year later, Shanks was dismissed from both posts by Derick Otis Steinmann (1943-2002), an Otis family descendant.

Steinmann was Chairman and CEO of ''American Banker'' and ''Bond Buyer'' from 1976 to the mid-1980s. Steinmann transitioned the newspapers to the computer era, and facilitated their sale in 1983 to International Thomson, from the estate of Charles Otis.

Subsequent ownership

Thomson Corporation began selling its North American newspapers in 2000 and announced its intention to put ''American Banker'' and ''Bond Buyer'' on the market in 2001. In 2004, ''American Banker'' and ''Bond Buyer'' were sold to Investcorp, which operated it as part of its SourceMedia business. In 2014, Investcorp sold SourceMedia to Observer Capital, a private equity firm founded by Joseph Meyer, the publisher of ''The New York Observer''.

Staff

''American Banker'' has approximately 50 reporters and editors in six U.S. cities who monitor developments and breaking news affecting banks.

Alan Kline, a 22-year veteran of the newspaper, was named editor-in-chief in January 2020, succeeding Rob Blackwell. Other former editors of ''American Banker'' include Marc Hochstein, Neil Weinberg, Barbara A. Rehm, who was editor in chief from 2008 to 2010, and David Longobardi, who was editor in chief from 1999 to 2009, when he was named Chief Content Officer of SourceMedia Inc., the business media company that had owned ''American Banker'' since 2004. Edwin A. Finn topped the masthead in 1990–92, and Phil Roosevelt from 1995 to 1999. As of May 2012, Finn was editor and president and Roosevelt was deputy managing editor of ''Barron's''.

Online presence

''American Banker'' launched an online edition in May 1996, featuring all articles from the print edition as well as certain online-only features such as forums.
In January 2016, ''American Banker'' announced they were ending their print edition, while continuing to publish content online.

Awards

In the 1980s, ''American Banker'' won two Gerald Loeb Awards and the George Polk Award for its coverage of two of the decade's major stories: The Chrysler bailout and the collapse of Penn Square Bank.

Notes

References

External links

{{Portal, Banks

About Us
– on Americanbanker.com

Business newspapers published in the United States
Publications established in 1836
American financial news websites
Daily newspapers published in New York City
1836 establishments in New York (state)