Washington, D.C. – Dennis Kelleher, President and CEO of Better Markets, issued this statement following the outcome of Starr International Co. v. U.S.:

“The lawsuit by AIG shareholders seeking $40 billion more from U.S. taxpayers shows once again that Wall Street greed knows no limits. In resoundingly rejecting that claim for damages, the court correctly found that AIG stockholders did not suffer. In fact, they received a windfall solely due to being bailed-out by U.S. taxpayers. That is a stunning loss for AIG’s former CEO and the already bailed-out shareholders. After all, this lawsuit was about taking $40 billion out of taxpayers’ pockets and moving it to AIG’s shareholders and they got zero. While the court did technically find that the Fed nevertheless acted illegally as to one claim, the reasoning is weak.

The court bizarrely expressed repeated sympathy for AIG, while failing to properly weigh the economic wreckage suffered by the American people. It’s the U.S. taxpayers that have been victimized here by AIG when it acted recklessly, precipitated the crash of the financial system, took a $185 billion bailout, and then gave bonuses to some of the very same people who irresponsibly sold the derivatives that blew up the company. That type of irresponsible recklessness by Wall Street shows that the unfinished job of financial reform must be completed.”

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Better Markets is an independent, nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that promotes the public interest in financial reform in the domestic and global capital and commodity markets. Better Markets advocates for transparency, oversight and accountability with the goal of a stronger, safer financial system that is less prone to crisis and failure thereby eliminating or minimizing the need for more taxpayer funded bailouts. To learn more, visit www.bettermarkets.com.