First, this is not the priority of the American people, but it is why they think Washington is out-of-touch and corrupt. Matt Yglesias has a must-read piece in Vox concisely detailing why the bill is unnecessary, dangerous and politically dumb. Take the two minutes to read it. And, then ask yourself: do the American people […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Wednesday, March 14, 2018 Contact: Nick Jacobs, 202-618-6430 or [email protected] Washington, D.C. – Dennis Kelleher, President and CEO of Better Markets, issued this statement following the Senate passage of S. 2155 today: “Marking the tenth anniversary of the collapse of Bear Stearns and the onset of the 2008 financial crisis, the Senate […]
We couldn’t agree more with Fed Chairman Jay Powell’s view of the critical role of bank boards of directors (as stated in a speech last August when he was a Governor): “We need financial institutions that are strong enough to support economic growth by lending through the economic cycle. To achieve that goal, we need strong and […]
Wall Street’s allies in Washington, D.C. are looking to once again hand out a massive bailout to some of the biggest banks in the country. They want to loosen regulations, which by definition, will impact our current financial stability. While it won’t be trillions of dollars of taxpayer money (though it will wind up costing […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Thursday, March 1, 2018 Contact: Nick Jacobs, 202-618-6430 or [email protected] Washington, D.C. – Dennis Kelleher, President and CEO of Better Markets, issued this statement regarding Fed Chairman Jerome Powell’s testimony today before the Senate Banking Committee regarding S. 2155 and the potential deregulation of foreign banks in the U.S.: “Chairman Powell was […]
Fed Chairman Powell, as he prepares for his first Congressional testimony as Chairman this week, will be reading and talking about all the standard monetary policy issues and questions (as captured in this article). However, the one article he should read and think deeply about is this one: Three Questions for Federal Reserve Chairman Jay […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Tuesday, February 27, 2018 Contact: Nick Jacobs, 202-618-6430 or [email protected] Washington, D.C. – Dennis Kelleher, President and CEO of Better Markets, issued this statement following a call by JP Morgan Chase to alter the capital buffers for GSIBs (global systemically important banks): “JP Morgan Chase claimed this morning that the critical capital […]
Stress tests have been one of the Federal Reserve Board’s most significant and indisputable successes since the 2008 financial crash and it must be extremely careful regarding any changes to ensure that its hard-won credibility is not damaged. This is not a theoretical concern. When Europe implemented what turned out to be “no-stress” stress tests, where banks […]
The Clearing House (TCH), one of Wall Street’s most powerful lobbying organizations in Washington DC, criticized Better Markets for an argument it did not make, while ignoring the facts that supported the statements Better Markets did make. On February 7, 2018, Politico ran a story entitled “Banks poised for windfall as regulators move to ease […]
As we said more than a year ago, Wells Fargo needed to take far-reaching, fundamental, concrete, unexpected and painful actions to fix the management, systems and controls failures that gave rise to their decade-long egregious misconduct. If not, we said, the bank risked being punished for all the unpunished sins of Wall Street for causing […]
The Fed’s Action Against Wells Fargo Sends a Message to Banks and Boardrooms Across America As we said more than a year ago, Wells Fargo needed to take far-reaching, fundamental, concrete, unexpected and painful actions to fix the management, systems and controls failures that gave rise to their decade-long egregious misconduct. If not, we said, […]
The complaints about financial reform that have been burning in deregulation devotees and lobbyists largely fall within one generalized rallying cry: “Banks are simply too burdened by excessive regulation to lend to the American people and fuel economic growth!” They claim this is due to restrictions preventing them from lending to supposedly creditworthy businesses and […]
In what is likely to be his last public speech as the head of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Chairman Martin Gruenberg in a speech delivered at an event at the Brookings Institution “Financial regulation – a post-crisis perspective,” offered a warning against the current deregulatory fever gripping President Trump’s newly installed financial regulators and […]
As anyone with passing familiarity of Better Markets knows, we have had our disagreements with Larry Summers. While he is indisputably intelligent and thought provoking, we have also found him to be dead wrong on a number of the most consequential economic issues facing our country. Worst of all, we remain disappointed in his ongoing […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Tuesday, November 7, 2017 Contact: Nick Jacobs, 202-618-6430 or [email protected] Washington, D.C. – Dennis Kelleher, president and CEO of Better Markets, released this statement following a misleading quote by Republicans on the House Financial Services Committee in connection with the introduction of a new bill: “House Financial Services Committee Republicans take a […]
In a significant and troubling step that will increase the already broad power that Congress has under the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to invalidate agency rules, the GAO announced last week its determination that “Interagency Guidance on Leveraged Lending” was subject to the CRA. The Guidance was issued in 2013 by banking regulators to address […]
A recent piece in The New York Times entitled “Why Democrats Need Wall Street” offers what can, at best, be described as a misguided view on Wall Street. At worst, it is little more than disguised Wall Street propaganda. First, it repeats Wall Street’s false talking points that Democrats are “demonizing banks and Wall Street.” […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Wednesday, July 19, 2017 Contact: Nick Jacobs, 202-618-6430 or [email protected] Washington, D.C. – Dennis Kelleher, President and CEO of Better Markets, released the following statement on the quarterly results announced by JP Morgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Citigroup and Bank of America, merely days before the 7th Anniversary of the Dodd-Frank […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Wednesday, July 12, 2017 Contact: Nick Jacobs, 202-618-6430 or [email protected] Washington, D.C. – Dennis Kelleher, President and CEO of Better Markets, released the following statement on the decision by the Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit in United States v. HSBC Bank to keep the report from the court-appointed monitor secret […]
As President Trump and his Chairman of the National Economic Council, Gary Cohn, join Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), John McCain (R-AZ), Angus King (I-ME) and Maria Cantwell (D-WA) in talking about “breaking up the too-big-to-fail banks” and bringing back “a Glass Steagall-type law,” we thought it would be useful to address the following questions: What is Glass-Steagall? What happened to […]
As President Trump and his Chairman of the National Economic Council, Gary Cohn, join Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), John McCain (R-AZ), Angus King (I-ME) and Maria Cantwell (D-WA) in talking about “breaking up the too-big-to-fail banks” and bringing back “a Glass Steagall-type law,” we thought it would be useful to address the following questions: What […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Thursday, May 4, 2017 Contact: Nick Jacobs, 202-618-6430 or [email protected] Washington, D.C. – As President Trump, National Economic Council Director Gary Cohn and others focusing on bringing back a “Glass-Steagall-type law,” Better Markets is releasing a Fact Sheet on Glass-Steagall to provide critical background on the original law and perspectives on the […]
As President Trump and his Chairman of the National Economic Council, Gary Cohn, join Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), John McCain (R-AZ), Angus King (I-ME) and Maria Cantwell (D-WA) in talking about “breaking up the too-big-to-fail banks” and bringing back “a Glass Steagall-type law,” we thought it would be useful to address the following questions: What […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Monday, April 24, 2017 Contact: Nick Jacobs, 202-618-6430 or [email protected] Washington, D.C. – With Wells Fargo’s shareholders voting for Board members at the Annual meeting this Tuesday, April 25th, Better Markets is releasing a Fact Sheet entitled “Why the Wells Fargo CEO and Board Must Go: Whitewash, Cover Up and Dereliction of […]
Wells Fargo, one of the largest banks in the United States, engaged in an egregious, years-long, illegal practice of ripping off millions of customers. It fraudulently opened and funded millions of bogus accounts with stolen customer money. In addition to falsely inflating revenue, profits and bonuses, these activities almost certainly manipulated the bank’s stock price. […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Monday, April 10, 2017 Contact: Nick Jacobs, 202-618-6430 or [email protected] Washington, D.C. – Dennis Kelleher, President and CEO of Better Markets, issued the following statement following the release of a report from the Wells Fargo Board of Directors on its bogus account scandal: “The self-investigation and actions reported today by the Board […]
As his eight year-long service to the country as a Governor on the Federal Reserve Board ends, Dan Tarullo gave a very important speech at Princeton University, offering a compelling and nuanced defense of critically important financial rules that are essential to protect America’s families, workers, savers and businesses. He also thoughtfully reviewed the key […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Thursday, April 6, 2017 Contact: Nick Jacobs, 202-618-6430 or [email protected] Washington, D.C. – Dennis Kelleher, President and CEO of Better Markets, issued the following statement following comments by NEC Chair Gary Cohn in support of restoring a Glass-Steagall-like financial protection: “We welcome NEC Chairman Gary Cohn’s reported possible support for restoring a […]
It’s rare that a question during a Congressional hearing leaves an entire panel of witnesses silent. But, that is exactly what happened when Representative Jim Himes’ (D-CT) questioned the panel of five witnesses during a hearing by the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital, Markets, and Investment. The subject of the hearing was “Examining the […]
Senators who attended the March 28th Senate Banking Committee Hearing on Fostering Economic Growth: The Role of Financial Companies, were fortunate that Professor William Spriggs, an economist from Howard and the AFL-CIO, was able to slog through D.C. traffic to deliver his compelling testimony and insight to the Committee. Together with Ms. Deyanira Del Rio, […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Wednesday, March 29, 2017 Contact: Nick Jacobs, 202-618-6430 or [email protected] Washington, D.C. – Dennis Kelleher, President and CEO of Better Markets, issued the following statement following the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Securities, and Investment hearing on the impact of the Volcker Rule: “SIFMA, the Chamber of Commerce and every […]
The assault on the Dodd-Frank Act continues today with another hearing held by the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Credit, looking at “The State of Bank Lending in America.” The real point of this hearing is to promote one of the more stubborn and completely bogus myths foisted on the American people: […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Monday, March 13, 2017 Contact: Nick Jacobs, 202-618-6430 or [email protected] STATEMENT ON FDIC VICE CHAIR HOENIG’S PROPOSAL ON BANK REGULATORY RELIEF AND ACCOUNTABILITY Washington, D.C. – Dennis Kelleher, President and CEO of Better Markets, issued the following statement on Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) Vice Chair Thomas Hoenig’s proposal on bank regulatory relief […]
In December 2016, Better Markets president and CEO, Dennis Kelleher, detailed in an American Banker Op Ed “How Wells Fargo Proves It’s Not a Wall Street Villain.” We communicated these recommendations to the highest levels of Wells Fargo, encouraging them to do the right thing rather than only after forced to do so by regulators, […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Friday, February 10, 2017 Contact: Nick Jacobs, 202-618-6430 or [email protected] Washington, D.C. – Dennis Kelleher, President and CEO of Better Markets, issued the following statement on the announced retirement of Federal Reserve Governor Daniel Tarullo: “For eight years, Fed Governor Dan Tarullo has been a fearless fighter for protecting the American people […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Thursday, December 15, 2016 Contact: Nick Jacobs, 202-618-6430 or [email protected] Washington, D.C. – Dennis Kelleher, President and CEO of Better Markets, issued this statement following the release by the Federal Reserve Board of its Total Loss Absorbing Capacity (TLAC) rule: “We applaud the Federal Reserve Board’s finalization of the total loss absorbing […]
“Since Wells Fargo’s alleged crimes are so easy to understand by the public, the bank’s executives and directors are all sitting ducks to shoulder the blame for general grievances with Wall Street’s biggest banks. “The irony, of course, is that Wells Fargo is not one of those Wall Street banks. It’s actually the type of […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Tuesday, November 29, 2016 Contact: Nick Jacobs, 202-618-6430 or [email protected] Updated Fact Sheet Re: House Vote This Week On $50 Billion Threshold and Fed’s SIFI Designation Washington, D.C. – Jeremy Bratt, Director of External Affairs for Better Markets, today issued the following statement regarding H.R. 6392, the so-called “Systemic Risk Designation Improvement Act of 2016,” that […]
Every day the headlines blare the latest revelations about the brazen, years long illegal conduct at Wells Fargo, including most recently the bank firing whistleblowers when they used the internal “ethics” hotline to report the wrongdoing, and at least one emailing the CEO about it. Developments are happening so fast, it’s hard to keep up, […]
Wells Fargo is facing calls to claw back bonuses paid to senior executives, including the outgoing head of its community banking division, as the fallout over its sham account scandal intensifies. Two top institutional shareholders in the world’s most valuable bank by market capitalisation have demanded answers over payments to Carrie Tolstedt, who headed the division where the episode […]
Wells Fargo & Co. has told some employees to stop cross-selling products to customers, while the Senate Banking Committee’s Republican majority said late Monday it plans a hearing into the bank’s sales practices. The committee intends to question Wells Fargo Chief Executive John Stumpf about the events that led the bank to pay a $185 million fine and […]
Wells Fargo is facing calls to claw back bonuses paid to senior executives, including the outgoing head of its community banking division, as the fallout over its sham account scandal intensifies. Two top institutional shareholders in the world’s most valuable bank by market capitalisation have demanded answers over payments to Carrie Tolstedt, who headed the division where the episode […]
Wells Fargo & Co’s WFC -0.37% “sandbagger”-in-chief is leaving the giant bank with an enormous pay day—$124.6 million. In fact, despite beefed-up “clawback” provisions instituted by the bank shortly after the financial crisis, and the recent revelations of massive misconduct, it does not appear that Wells Fargo is requiring Carrie Tolstedt, the Wells Fargo executive who was in charge of […]
Julie Miller was working in Pennsylvania for Wachovia when Wells Fargo took over the Charlotte bank in 2008 and began changing more than the name on its branches. Miller said she watched with dismay as Wells Fargo increased her branch’s sales goals and lowered bonuses for meeting the new targets. The changes took place around […]
Ask Kweku Adoboli why bankers do not go to jail, and he would no doubt look surprised. A London-based trader at the Swiss bank UBS, Adoboli was jailed in November 2012 for what police described as the biggest fraud in UK history. He racked up £1.2bn of losses through secretive trades – and at one […]
There was a time when one had to wait at least 20 years between big banking crises. Perhaps this was because the generation that had learnt the hard way had to retire before the next crop could repeat the mistakes of their elders. This is no longer the case. Business leaders who were present at […]
Law360, New York (August 29, 2016, 1:47 PM ET) — A Wall Street watchdog group on Friday urged the U.S. Supreme Court to take on a case seeking to overturn a Sixth Circuit decision that blocked a whistleblower suit alleging foreclosure fraud at U.S. Bank NA. Better Markets said in its brief that the Sixth Circuit’s March ruling, […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Friday, August 26, 2016 Contact: Nick Jacobs, 202-618-6430 or [email protected] **To read the full amicus brief click here** Washington, D.C. – Better Markets today submitted an amicus brief to the United States Supreme Court, in support of a petition for certiorari to the Sixth Circuit in United States ex rel. Advocates for Basic Legal Equality, […]
WASHINGTON — A new proposed long-term liquidity requirement confers little benefit while adding compliance costs and contradicting existing regulations, according to banks and financial industry trade groups. In a joint letter to the regulators, several trade groups representing large banks argued that the Liquidity Coverage Ratio, a liquidity measure finalized in 2014 that requires banks […]
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