FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, March 13, 2017
Contact: Nick Jacobs, 202-618-6430 or njacobs@bettermarkets.com
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 and accountability:
“FDIC Vice Chair Hoenig’s proposal today is serious, comprehensive, fact-based and deeply thoughtful. The core tradeoff is a substantial increase in bank capital in exchange for a lowering of regulatory requirements. Because the capital equity cushion is all that stands between a systemically significant bank and taxpayers’ pockets, the key to this proposal is how much capital and the details of the resulting reduced regulatory requirements.
“While Mr. Hoenig is certainly moving in the right direction on both, a 10 percent capital leverage ratio is simply too low to reduce the risk of a fragile financial system and yet more financial crashes, taxpayer bailouts and economic catastrophe. The biggest, most dangerous megabanks incurred losses and recapitalization needs of roughly 20 percent of risk-weighted assets during the 2007–2009 financial crisis, according to the Fed and other global regulators. And those losses were only as ‘low’ as 20 percent because the US government and taxpayers bailed out the entire global financial system, thereby putting a floor under the megabanks’ losses.
“While we are still reviewing Mr. Hoenig’s proposal, there is no doubt he has once again done a great public service by detailing his ideas and subjecting them to public debate. His proposal deserves the widest consideration by all those in public office with the public duty to protect America’s families from another financial and economic catastrophe like 2008, the effects of which are still hurting tens of millions of American workers, students, homeowners, retirees and savers.”
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Better Markets is a non-profit, non-partisan, and independent organization founded in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis to promote the public interest in the financial markets, support the financial reform of Wall Street and make our financial system work for all Americans again. Better Markets works with allies – including many in finance – to promote pro-market, pro-business and pro-growth policies that help build a stronger, safer financial system that protects and promotes Americans’ jobs, savings, retirements and more. To learn more, visit www.bettermarkets.com.
