If Senate Banking Committee chairman Richard Shelby was hoping to ignite the passions of financial regulation experts across the political spectrum with his proposed regulatory relief bill, he’s certainly succeeded. *** However, Shelby’s proposal could turn out to be a Trojan horse smuggling gifts to large banks, as Dennis Kelleher, head of the public interest […]
US lawmakers are returning to battle over lax mortgage lending as Democrats and their allies say Republicans want to let banks go back to the loose loan standards at the heart of the financial crisis. *** Dennis Kelleher, chief executive of Better Markets, a non-profit group critical of Wall Street, said Mr Shelby was trying […]
The chairman of the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday proposed the largest overhaul of financial rules since the Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform law, pinning his hopes for passage of the sweeping bill on a small group of moderate Democrats. *** Dennis Kelleher, president and CEO of the group Better Markets, for example, described the proposal […]
NEW YORK — Wall Street has a message for bank-bashing U.S. populist politicians: Put down the pitchforks or you could end up like Ed Miliband. *** Dennis Kelleher, head of financial reform group Better Markets, said many other factors were at play in the U.K. “Claiming the five-week sprint known as the U.K. […]
Few policy debates make the average American’s eyes glaze over faster than the debate over the costs and benefits of the 2010 Dodd-Frank law. But few debates rile up lawmakers and wonks more. *** “Focusing on claimed costs of regulation to prevent another financial crash ignores the massive and very expensive costs of such crashes,” […]
“Former Sen. Ted Kaufman, D-Del., and Dennis Kelleher, president and CEO of Better Markets, are urging Congress to create an independent commission to investigate the “Flash Crash,” which caused the market to lose nearly $1 trillion in value five years ago. “In their letter to Senate and House leaders, Kaufman and Kelleher write that on May 6, […]
“As Preet Bharara approaches his sixth anniversary as the powerful United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, with a track record of successful, attention-grabbing prosecutions that have made him the envy of his peers, it’s hard not to think that he is looking and sounding more and more like a candidate for […]
“Former Senator Ted Kaufman (D-Delaware) and President and CEO of Better Markets Dennis Kelleher today are calling on Congress to create an independent commission to investigate the so-called “Flash Crash.” “May 6th marks the fifth anniversary of that historic stock market crash. “Five years ago on May 6th, in just 36 dizzying minutes, the US stock market […]
Listen to the Corporate Crime Reporter Morning Minute for May 6, 2015 on the fifth Anniversary of the “Flash Crash” by Russel Mokhiber here.
“In a letter to Congressional leadership, former Senator Ted Kaufman (D-Dela.) and President and CEO of Better Markets Dennis Kelleher today called on Congress to create an independent commission to investigate the so-called ‘Flash Crash.’ May 6th marks the fifth anniversary of that historic stock market crash. … “‘While many investigations were done years ago into […]
“A few years ago, the chief of one of the world’s wealthiest financial institutions was calling around Washington, D.C., seeking to stifle outspoken anti-big bank crusader Dennis Kelleher ’84. “You evidently don’t know Dennis Kelleher,” the bank boss was told repeatedly. “You are not going to shut him down.” “The big banks have been unable […]
“Let’s assume that when he woke up on the morning of Dec. 12, Michael Corbat, CEO of Citigroup, was feeling pretty good. The day before, the House of Representatives had passed a bill that would save his bank and others lots of money and headaches. “The trouble was, Elizabeth Warren, the senior senator from Massachusetts, […]
“What do Senator Elizabeth Warren, Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen, and Christine Lagarde, the managing director of the International Monetary Fund, have in common? For one, all three will appear in Washington this week, at a conference about finance and its relationship to the rest of society. In the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis, […]
“The financial industry and the White House are gearing up for a fresh battle this spring over investment advice for retirement savings. “The Department of Labor issued a draft proposal earlier this month that would require financial advisers to provide retirement savings advice that is in a customer’s “best interest” in an effort to minimize […]
“Lynn Parramore: How would you describe the problem of Too Big to Fail banks. Whey does it matter to an ordinary person? “Anat Admati: Too Big to Fail is a license for recklessness. These institutions defy notions of fairness, accountability, and responsibility. They are the largest, most complex, and most indebted corporations in the entire […]
“The main financial risk facing the United States today looks very similar to what caused so much trouble in 2007-2008: big banks with too much debt and too little equity capital on their balance sheets. Uneven global regulations, not to mention regulators who fall asleep at the wheel, compound this structural vulnerability. “We already saw […]
As far back as 2009, CME Group identified a high volume of cancelled orders by the UK trader charged this week with contributing to the 2010 “flash crash”. Now the operator of the largest US futures market is under scrutiny for allowing his conduct continue into 2014. *** “It’s very, very difficult when you’re looking […]
Regulators and law enforcement extracted a hefty fine for fraud at one of America’s most respected financial institutions. Have sovereign wealth funds learned their lesson? *** Others take the position that a lack of regulatory aggressiveness renders such suits useless. “The travesty of these seemingly large settlements is that they do nothing to deter the […]
WASHINGTON — The unusual trial of Maurice R. Greenberg’s $40 billion lawsuit against the government ended on Wednesday in much the same way it started, with both sides presenting starkly different narratives about the 2008 taxpayer bailout of the American International Group. *** “Greenberg got lucky with a judge who decided he wanted to listen […]
WASHINGTON — Banks and public interest groups are squaring off on whether the Federal Reserve Board should extend its proposed capital surcharge on the largest and most complex U.S. banks to be included in the agency’s annual stress test analyses. *** But Dennis Kelleher, president of public interest group Better Markets, argued that the G-SIB […]
Rolling back regulations created after the 2008 crisis has been Job 1 for leaders of many of the nation’s large and powerful banking institutions. So it’s no surprise that recent proposals for regulatory reform in the financial industry have overwhelmingly been the work of big banks or their supporters. The bankers want to return to […]
Hillary Clinton’s decision to hire one of Wall Street’s fiercest regulators could assuage concerns she is too close to the sector, while at the same time handing her an expert financial mind to oversee the massive election effort. *** “Who actually is at the power table? Who has not just input but influence with […]
A newly proposed rule to ban retirement planners from creating conflicts of interest with their customers might appear to put an end to the years-long policy fight over the issue. *** “This is going to be the biggest battle since Dodd-Frank, hands down,” said Dennis Kelleher, chief executive of financial reform advocacy group Better Markets […]
The Department of Labor issued for public comment Tuesday the long-anticipated controversial redraft of its rule to amend the definition of fiduciary under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act. *** Dennis Kelleher, CEO of Better Markets, applauded DOL’s release of its fiduciary plan. “Today is a day Wall Street hoped would never come: the American […]
A newly proposed rule to ban retirement planners from creating conflicts of interest with their customers might appear to put an end the years-long policy fight over the issue. *** “This is going to be the biggest battle since Dodd-Frank, hands down,” said Dennis Kelleher, chief executive of financial reform advocacy group Better Markets Inc., […]
The Dodd-Frank Act is a sprawling work of hundreds of provisions encompassing the entire financial sector. Singling out one development and insisting it shows Dodd-Frank “working” is an act of either tremendous partisanship or misinformation. In reality, it’s a testament to how big the financial system is – too big, in fact – that you […]
In the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis, Keith Higgins was certain: Banks weren’t to blame. Higgins, a top attorney at prominent law firm Ropes & Gray LLP, was chairman of an American Bar Association committee on securities regulation. As such, he lobbied strenuously against a rule U.S. regulators were drafting that would require banks […]
More than 10 years ago, the kinds of investors who seek out weak companies were circulating presentations on Wall Street that argued that General Electric’s enormous lending business was a ticking time bomb. *** “G.E.’s decision today shows that some of the financial reform measures regulators have taken are working,” Dennis Kelleher, the president of […]
WASHINGTON — General Electric said Friday that it will sell off most of its financial operations, in what will be the most dramatic restructuring of the American banking system yet effected under the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform law. *** “GE’s decision today shows that some of the financial reform measures regulators have taken are […]
WASHINGTON — If the Financial Stability Oversight Council was hoping for any kind of consensus on whether and how it should regulate asset management companies, the feedback it has received on its request for comment is likely disappointing. *** Better Markets agreed with the asset management industry that any designation would have to be “extensive, […]
For more than a month now, the White House has been vetting a proposal by the Labor Department that would require financial advisers to act solely in the interests of clients when giving advice on retirement accounts. The White House should move the process forward without further delay. Its own research has shown that biased advice costs retirement investors […]
Originally published in Financial World Robert Jenkins tells a cautionary tale to foreign banks operating in Greece Few financiers study the history of finance. This ensures that the tried and true will continue to surprise. Might a long-ago event in Vietnam hold lessons for Europe? As the Greek saga unfolds, it might be useful to recall […]
NEW YORK (AP) — Susan Bernardo trusted her stockbroker. She wound up losing a fortune. Her broker, David Harris, advised her to sell $400,000 worth of relatively safe municipal bonds, she says, and sink the proceeds into real estate and energy partnerships in hopes of earning more income. She had received the cash from a […]
Harry Reid’s decision to not seek reelection could open another front in the battle for the direction of the Democratic Party, and its complicated relationship with Wall Street. *** “Let’s not forget how important Senate leadership was in getting the Dodd-Frank bill done,” said Dennis Kelleher, president and CEO of Better Markets. “Senate Democrats, with […]
For the past two years, 3.50pm in Hong Kong has been a golden moment in the soaring fortunes of Hanergy Thin Film Power Group, the $35.5bn solar company that has transformed its owner into China’s richest man. *** Read the full Financial Times article by Miles Johnson and Gavin Jackson here.
For so-called “masters of the universe,” Wall Street executives sure seem touchy about criticism. It seems they don’t like being painted as the bad guys. *** Read the full Huffington Post article by Richard Eskow here.
For some time now, SIFMA, the self-described “voice of the U.S. securities industry,” has been loudly proclaiming its support for a fiduciary standard for brokers while working overtime to kill Department of Labor (DOL) rulemaking to achieve that result. *** Read the full Huffington Post article by Barbara Roper here.
Denise Pitts walked into the pawn shop not far from where she bought her mobile home in Knoxville, Tennessee, and offered up her wedding rings for $100. Her marriage wasn’t over, but her husband was battling cancer and, Pitts said, her mortgage company told her the only way to keep a roof over his head […]
NEW YORK (MainStreet) — Today’s investors may feel overwhelmed by the abundance of information available, not all of it trustworthy. If you’re looking for reliable information or think you’ve been ripped off, here are some sources that can help: Better Markets is a nonprofit group that lobbies on behalf of the average person. Its president […]
While many in the industry are applauding Securities and Exchange Commission Chairwoman Mary Jo White’s recent declaration that she will push to ensure the agency extends a fiduciary rule for brokers, concerns remain that such a rule will be a long time in the making—and may not even happen at all. *** Dennis Kelleher, president […]
NEW YORK (Reuters) – In 2007, a Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc employee emailed his boss with his view of a sample of mortgages underlying a bond that the bank was underwriting: “This one is crap.” *** Read the full Reuters story by Nate Raymond here.
(Reuters) – Big Wall Street banks are so upset with Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren’s call for them to be broken up that some have discussed withholding campaign donations to Senate Democrats in symbolic protest, sources familiar with the discussions said. *** Read the full Reuters story by Emily Filter here.
With all the new laws and regulations since the financial crisis, it would be easy to believe that the banking industry is safer. Unfortunately, speakers at the Federal Reserve conference at George Washington University on Friday offered a range of reasons for why that’s not the case. *** Read the full New York Times article […]
The biggest banks on Wall Street were shut out of the biggest deal of the year. The merger of Kraft and H.J. Heinz will create a company with a market value in excess of $75 billion. But JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs and Wells Fargo will not get a slice of the […]
(Bloomberg) — U.S. prosecutors investigating currency manipulation are considering revoking years-old settlements and prosecuting banks for rigging interest rates, according to people familiar with the matter. *** Read the full Bloomberg story by David McLaughlin and Tom Schoenberg here.
The balance of power between Wall Street and Silicon Valley shifted another degree westward. Ruth Porat, chief financial officer of Morgan Stanley, is leaving to take the same job at Google Inc., a symbolically significant move by a high-profile Wall Street executive — and one of the financial industry’s most prominent women. *** […]
NO, THE IMF DID NOT CRITICIZE HIGHER CAPITAL Contra an M.M. headline on Friday, the IMF did not suggest in a paper that higher capital requirements lead to lower lending. Our bad. Per Better Markets’ Dennis Kelleher: “What I didn’t expect (when I finally got around to reading it) was it hyperlinked to nothing more […]
A lawsuit filed against a settlement between JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM – Analyst Report) and the U.S Department of Justice (DOJ) was recently dismissed by U.S Federal Judge Beryl A. Howell. The lawsuit, filed by non-profit group Better Markets, was turned down by Howell due to lack of substantial evidence of any harm caused. *** […]
Andrew Ceresney, the enforcement chief at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), went before the House Financial Services Committee today, laid out his program and put on the table the SEC’s budget request — including hiring 93 additional staff for the enforcement division. All the hires in the world won’t make a difference unless the […]
A U.S. federal judge tossed out a lawsuit brought by non-profit group Better Markets that sought to block a $13 billion settlement JPMorgan Chase & Co reached with the U.S. Justice Department over shoddy mortgage loans sold to investors before the financial crisis. *** Better Markets sued the Justice Department last February, contending that the […]
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