Big Banks Get $600B Windfall, Meanwhile Your Savings Account Pays What?
According to the Financial Times, America's largest banks have seen their value surge by $600 billion, thanks to deregulation that allows 'higher leverage' and 'overhauled stress tests.' (Which is a polite way of saying, fewer rules and less oversight.) This isn't just a win for shareholders; post-2008, lobbying efforts by these same institutions led to significant rollbacks of Dodd-Frank
protections, as critics warned. Senator Chris Dodd himself expressed concerns about these changes. Remember 2008? The last time 'higher leverage' without 'annoying stress tests' made banks $600 billion richer before they begged taxpayers to bail them out. One might wonder if the Financial Times will be as enthusiastic about documenting the next inevitable collapse caused by these 'gains.' Or will
they just call it an 'unforeseen market correction' and move on? Conveniently, the article never connects these 'gains' to the increased risk for the average American taxpayer, who will ultimately foot the bill when the casino inevitably burns down again.