It was less of a goodbye kiss and more of a farewell hand-off in the face. Thirteen months after getting government cash from the Troubled Asset Relief Programme, America's megabanks have stampeded to repay it before the new year, desperate to escape the stigma and meddling it has brought. On December 9th Bank of America (Bof A) said it had repaid the $45 billion of preferred stock owned by the state and sold $19 billion of new ordinary shares. Citigroup and Wells Fargo announced similar plans on December 14th. (JPMorgan Chase, the other megabank, repaid the state in June.)
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