“These banks are not alone in grumbling about the regulatory burdens imposed by Vickers. That they have got a sympathetic hearing in Whitehall perhaps reflects government fears about the psychological impact of a global bank such as HSBC upping sticks. George Osborne, the chancellor of the exchequer, has offered to water down this rule. […]
“”The financial earthquake triggered by excessive mortgage lending to subprime borrowers had its epicentre in the US. But the shocks caused by the era of cheap credit were felt in Britain too. With British banks offering mortgages worth up to seven times a borrower’s income, it is unsurprising that the bursting of the bubble […]
Judge Jed Rakoff is furious. He should be. We all should be. On Monday, the Federal District Court judge rightly rejected a plan by the Securities and Exchange Commission to settle a securities fraud case against Citigroup, saying that the $285 million deal was “neither fair, nor reasonable, nor adequate, nor in the public interest.” It’s not only […]
There will be plenty of questions left after today’s hearing on a $285 million fraud settlement Citigroup Inc. reached last month with the Securities and Exchange Commission. But there should be only one answer from Jed S. Rakoff, the federal judge in New York assigned to weigh the merits of the agreement: You’ve got to be kidding. Read […]
The whole subject of international banking regulation, and in particular the topic of capital standards for large banks, may seem a bit untimely just now, what with Europe’s banks at the brink of collapse — even though regulators declared them amply capitalized just weeks ago. Given that recent history, it’s tempting to write off the debate over […]
“Of course, banks will pass the costs of the Volcker Rule on to their customers — in higher fees or reduced services, or both. But financial stability is a public good, not a free lunch. A well-designed Volcker Rule could help prevent or mitigate crises like the one the world lived through in 2008 — […]
“What began with demonstrations in Madrid this spring has coalesced into something on a much grander scale. The anger of the Indignants on the Puerta del Sol has traversed the Atlantic and has fired the supporters of the Occupy movement in New York’s Zuccotti Park and beyond. This is now a viral protest spreading to […]
“Bankers in this country are not letting up on their campaign to undercut the Dodd-Frank financial reform law, which is supposed to curb risky behavior and lessen the chances of another meltdown. They are also eagerly joining their overseas brethren in a similarly fierce campaign against new international rules that would require banks to gradually […]
Big U.S. banks have found a lot not to like in the Volcker rule. We agree that regulations shouldn’t be unduly burdensome. But we see no good reason to share banks’ objections on this one. Read the story at Bloomberg
“For a year now, Britain’s economy has been stuck in a vicious cycle of low growth, high unemployment and fiscal austerity. But unlike Greece, which has been forced into induced recession by misguided European Union creditors, Britain has inflicted this harmful quack cure on itself.” Read the full story here.
“These declines are worrisome in the sense that they reflect the weakness of the broader economy. Joblessness, damaged credit and falling home values have left people unable to borrow or to repay debt and businesses reluctant to hire and invest. But the results also reflect how the banks built profits abusing their customers. Read the […]
“As investors again fear to tread amid the holes of unknown depth that riddle Europe’s banking system, policymakers have finally regained their resolve. Better late than never: the efforts now being made to probe and fill the capital needs of banks are welcome news.” Read the full article at the Financial Times
“When the biggest dog on the block begs to be put on a leash it is a good idea to listen. BlackRock’s renewed call this week for tougher curbs on exchange-traded funds should make regulators sit up. As a market leader, it knows the risks of a $1,626bn industry that displays many of the same […]
“This is not the time for the usual demands by business for fewer regulations and lower taxes. The economy is too fragile and the deficit too high — in no small part because the George W. Bush administration spent eight years giving business and the wealthy exactly what they asked for. Instead, business leaders should […]
“Representative Barney Frank, a Democrat of Massachusetts, got it exactly right this week when he asked the Federal Reserve to do more than just rubber-stamp the proposed purchase of the online bank, ING Direct, by the Capital One Financial Corporation.” Read the full story at The New York Times
“In what can only be described as a triumph of bad policy and craven politics, Congress and the Obama administration have spent the year focused on budget cuts, as the economy has faltered and unemployment has worsened. Official unemployment is 9.1 percent, but it would be 16.1 percent, or 25.1 million people, if it included […]
“High youth unemployment is not just a North African problem. The looting that ravaged English cities last week happened in a country where one in five young people is jobless. The picture in the US is no better. In continental Europe it is worse. More than 45 per cent of young Spaniards and 38 per […]
“Financial markets’ growing concern about the state of European banks exposes a reality that the political theater in the U.S. had obscured: The euro area’s debt troubles are probably the single largest threat to the global economy.” Read the full story at Bloomberg View
“When the Supreme Court ruled that the government may not ban campaign spending by corporations in the landmark Citizens United decision last year, it argued that disclosure of contributions would protect American democracy from hidden corporate agendas.” Read the full article at the New York Times
“The pillars of the European economy are still under pressure. The public finances of many countries have been ruined by the crisis, while the public financial system is still unrepaired.” Read the full story at The Financial Times
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