Wells Fargo became the last of the big lenders to rush through a repayment before the end of the year, signifying a fitting bookend to the bailout era. Hours after Citigroup confirmed it was exiting the federal Troubled Asset Relief Program, Wells said it would return the $25bn it was given to weather the worst financial storm since the Depression, says the NY Times.

Kraft Foods on Tuesday questioned Cadbury's defense against the US company's hostile takeover attempt, telling Cadbury's shareholders to ask how the British company will achieve its growth targets without the scale and investment that Kraft can offer, writes the Wall Street Journal.

Bank of America suffered a setback in its 10-week search for a chief executive after talks with the leading outside candidate ended over pay and governance issues, forcing the board to reconsider two internal contenders. Robert Kelly, the CEO of Bank of New York Mellon, jumped ahead of two top BofA executives to become the leading candidate to succeed Kenneth Lewis, who is set to retire at year end, people familiar with the matter said, reports the Wall Street Journal.

President Obama reiterated his call Monday for the nation's banks to increase lending, saying that he was getting too many letters from small businesses unable to borrow money. "America's banks received extraordinary assistance" from the government, Obama said at a press conference following a meeting with the heads of the largest banks, according to the Washington Post.

Google has been letting its employees test a new cellphone that could be rolled out to consumers as soon as next month, potentially marking its first foray into the business of selling mobile phones, says the LA Times.

Ousted by Los Angles financial giant TCW Group, star bond fund manager Jeffrey Gundlach on Monday turned to a firm whose executives had their own bitter breakup with TCW nearly 15 years ago. Gundlach said that he was launching an investment firm called DoubleLine with help from Oaktree Capital Management, a major global investor in bonds and private equity, writes the LA Times.

Drugmakers intensified their lobbying push Monday against a popular proposal to allow Americans to buy cheaper drugs from other countries, one of several heated disputes that have bogged down negotiations over a heath-care reform bill, reports the Washington Post.

Exxon Mobil's purchase of a Texas natural gas producer for $29bn could reshape the US energy landscape, setting the stage for the fuel to challenge coal in the nation's electrical grid and helping to alleviate American dependence on foreign oil, according to the LA Times.

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