M&A hopes for the banking sector were boosted, however, following Capital One’s (NYSE: COF) $9 billion bid last week for ING Direct (NYSE: ING).
Conversely, shares of ratings agencies traded lower last week after The Wall Street Journal reported U.S. securities regulators are mulling civil charges against the firms for their role in facilitating mortgage-bond deals that helped trigger the credit meltdown. [Capital One, Ratings Agencies in Focus]
Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund
