Apologizing, Northern Trust to Pay Back Bailout Funds

Northern Trust, after receiving $1.5 million in Troubled Asset Relief Program funds, has apologized for sponsoring the PGA Northern Trust Open golf tournament in Los Angeles last weekend, and has pledged to repay the bailout funds it has received. Northern Trust CEO Frederick Waddell wrote in a letter to U.S. Rep Barney Frank, D-Mass.:

We understand this is a time of great anxiety and financial distress, and your question regarding our support of an event such as the Northern Trust Open is legitimate. We deeply regret that some of the events associated with the Northern Trust Open have distracted from the positive nature of an event that has raised more than $50 million for charity since its inception.

The event has been described as “lavish,” although Earth, Wind, and Fire were there to perform, so we’re thinking “lavish” is relative.

Northern Trust will be the first bank to pay back any TARP funds. Northern Trust’s loans and leases are up 21 percent from a year ago, and for 2008, posted net income of $795 million, up 9 percent from 2007. [Crain’s, Trib, WBBM, UPI]