Sheila Blair and the FDIC are right. The banking industry must step up and take part in finding a solution to a problem that they were responsible for creating in the first place. Struggling to stay afloat as the federal deposit insurance fund dwindles, The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) issued a proposal yesterday requiring… Continue Reading
Monthly Archives: September 2009
Salary Caps and the Financial Sector
Posted in Banks and Financial Services“It seemed inconceivable that bankers would, just a few months later, be going right back to the practices that brought the world’s financial system to the edge of collapse.” - Paul Krugman I think I speak for most Americans when I say I have a visceral distaste for the government dictating salaries. Come on; some… Continue Reading
True Transparency and the TARP
Posted in Banks and Financial Services“Instead of writing Secretary Geithner, what Congressman Sestak really needs to do is use his good offices to propose legislation creating a private right of action to curb TARP abuses.” Recently, Representative Joe Sestak (D-Pa) opined on The Hill’s Congress Blog that we need more oversight and transparency for TARP funds. You think??? Of course… Continue Reading
Once Again, Bank of America Caught In The Middle of Investor Fraud
Posted in Banks and Financial ServicesThe New York Times reported yesterday yet another fraudulent investment scheme. Ho hum. This time it is a group of investors suing an entity called Lancer Offshore and a few other hedge funds run by Michael Lauer. Lauer’s gains from the scheme total around $62 million, and overall losses for investors total over $550 million. Nothing new, right?… Continue Reading
The Honorable Jed Rakoff Seeks Justice and Morality on Wall Street
Posted in Consumer ProtectionFrustrated by Bank of America’s failure to come clean, Rakoff issued a bitter ruling condemning the bank for its dishonesty and immorality. “It is not fair, first and foremost because it does not comport with the most elementary notions of justice and morality…” Today we applaud the Honorable Jed Rakoff – our former “Person of… Continue Reading
Fluoride: The Growing Debate
Posted in Consumer Protection“Does the orthodoxy of water fluoridation need to be reexamined?”
Speculating on Grandma’s Death: Wall Street’s Gruesome Grab for Fees
Posted in Consumer ProtectionNormal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 Securitization of life settlements is yet another dangerous development for Main Street. Is this really what we need right now? It just doesn’t stop. Despite repeated lessons and tales from the brink (the collapse and near collapse… Continue Reading
Ponzi Schemes: JP Morgan Chase Looks the Other Way
Posted in Banks and Financial ServicesThe SEC is getting aggressive on Ponzi and Prime Bank schemes. Here we go again. The SEC has shut down another Ponzi scheme. When will it end? It will only end when big banks stop sponsoring, assisting, and ignoring schemes that are operating within their banks. From October 2006 until the summer of 2009, William Graulich… Continue Reading