The United States is the most successful political, economic, and financial enterprise the globe has ever seen. It has this position because it has always embraced risk.
While a bankruptcy court has traditionally been a "debtorsÂ' court" committed to helping grant debtors a fresh start, it should not allow for unchecked opportunities to hold the whole process hostage.
The Volcker Rule is a veritable leviathan in size and complexity, but the jury is out on whether it can truly avert another London Whale-type fiasco. DonÂ't hold your breath.
It should be obvious that no one in his or her right mind would design the bank regulatory system we have today. No third-world country's bureaucracy is so byzantine.
The Office of Financial Research has made a number of improvements in its measurement of systemic risk but falls well short of providing a forward-looking assessment of emerging dangers.
In her final column for American Banker , Editor-at-Large Barbara Rehm says there is no denying the system is safer than it was in 2007, and while further changes may be needed, it makes sense to Â"take a breather.Â"
If compliance burden sends traders packing for Russia, Brazil or Mexico, the U.S. would lose not only investment capital but also the ability to monitor algorithmic trading for manipulative practices.
What we have seen from the bank regulatory agencies is an unsustainable proliferation of rules. Big banks are taking on water to keep up, while community banks are being swamped.
The industry has moved from a traditional customer-oriented banking model to a transactional and counterparty-oriented model. This change has contributed to an operating environment in which the opportunity for abuse and deception has increased.
