“To be or not to be a bank?

“The Federal Reserve, Congress and some of the world’s largest financial institutions are about to tackle the existential issue of what a bank is.

“The narrow version of the debate is whether J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.,Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Morgan Stanley  should continue to own, store and transport commodities such as oil, copper and electricity. But its ramifications reach into a cornerstone of modern U.S. financial architecture: the separation of finance and commerce.

“Decisions taken in coming weeks should determine the boundaries of what banks can and can’t do, as well as affecting other participants in the economy ranging from brewers to Coke drinkers.”

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Read full Wall Street Journal article here