The banks that received federal money in the first tranche were pretty much told not to sit on it. They have to deploy it somehow. So that raises the question: How? You would have to think all of them are thinking about acquisitions of some type. Even after buying Bear Stearns and Washington Mutual, JPMorgan Chase is not ruling out more acquisition, reports Financial News Online. Jamie Dimon says he will use the funds toward the good of shareholders. Would an acquisition be kosher with the feds, whose goal is to facilitate more lending? That's unclear. As long as we get a meaningful pick up in credit market activity, the government may be fine with such moves. Of course, this may take some time. It would be foolish to start handing out loans or buying commercial paper of questionable quality.

For more:
- here's the Financial News Online article

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