Saint Anselm rebuts US report on student lending

A Saint Anselm College official said the US Senate committee report on student lending practices published a 2003 e-mail that incorrectly said Providence-based Citizens Bank was its exclusive lender, and denied any improprieties stemming from the bank's donation to the school. The report issued by US Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee chairman Edward M. Kennedy cited the gift as an example of a lender trying to gain preferential treatment. Nanci Tessier, vice president for college marketing and enrollment management for the Manchester, N.H., college, said Citizens provided $5,000 that year to help pay for consulting fees as the financial aid office was updating its computer system and did not ask for or receive any preferential treatment. "We would never do anything that would not be in the best interests of our students," she said, noting the college worked with around 20 lenders at the time. (Se Young Lee)

Fairbank Farms, a US ground beef producer, said it is voluntarily recalling beef patties sold to Shaw's Supermarkets in New England because of concerns about bacterial contamination. Fairbank Farms said the patties could have been purchased by consumers yesterday between 7 and 11 a.m. The patties have now been pulled from shelves, the company said. Customers can get a full refund or exchange. The meat producer said the patties may have been contaminated with a form of E.coli. (Reuters)

Sycamore Networks Inc., a Chelmsford developer of optical networking products for telecom service providers, said its fiscal fourth-quarter loss widened as its cost of revenue and operating expenses rose. For the quarter ended July 31, the loss was $6.1 million, or 2 cents per share, compared with a loss of $3 million, or 1 cent per share, in the year-ago quarter. Excluding special items, earnings were $6.3 million, or 2 cents per share, compared with $5 million, or 2 cents per share, in the year-ago period. Analysts polled by Thomson Financial expected adjusted earnings of 4 cents per share. Revenue was $38 million, up from $16.3 million in the year-ago period. Shares fell 31 cents, or 7.7 percent, to $3.73. (AP)

Quattro Wireless, a Waltham company focused on mobile marketing, said it has secured $12.3 million in Series B funding. Quattro said the round was led by Globespan Capital Partners, and brings the company's total venture investment to $18 million. Quattro said the latest financing will be used to launch its GetMobile platform. (Chris Reidy)

Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal sued mortgage brokerage companies and individual brokers and contractors for misleading investors and allegedly operating a predatory lending scheme. Blumenthal claims seven companies and individuals orchestrated the scheme by offering low-income investors homes at inflated prices. The defendants falsified loan documentation and promised to provide property management services for investors buying rental units - promises they later broke - according to Blumenthal's complaint. (Bloomberg)

Countrywide Financial Corp , the largest US mortgage lender, said it will cut 900 jobs nationwide, primarily in its mortgage production divisions. The move follows a previous round of layoffs last month, when the mortgage lender cut an unspecified number of workers in a unit that lends to borrowers who generally have little or no documentation. The latest layoffs represent about 1.5 percent of the lender's workforce of about 60,000, according to the latest figures from the company. (Reuters)

Flight testing on Boeing Co.'s new 787 jetliner has been delayed until mid-November or mid-December, months later than originally planned. But the company insisted it is on track to deliver the first plane on time in spring. Mike Bair, vice president and general manager of the 787 program, said it's taking longer than anticipated to get the first plane ready because of complications with final assembly and finalizing flight-control software. (AP)

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