BankThink

Why has Congress´ search for accountability in the financial crisis been such a disappointment?

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke faces a grilling today by the House Committee on Oversight and Government Affairs on his role in allegedly forcing Bank of America to buy Merrill Lynch late last year. BankThink is bringing you live coverage from the hearing, at which Bernanke will be the only witness. Republicans on the committee turned up the heat yesterday with a memo detailing accusations that Bernanke and other senior Fed officials coerced BofA Chief Executive Ken Lewis to go through with merger despite Lewis´ objections, then covered up information about the enormity of Merrill´s losses. The memo includes excerpts from emails between senior Fed officials revealing key details such as discussions on how to delay Merrill´s public fourth quarter earnings filing, as well as the exclusion of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency from discussions on the imperiled deal.

Pity the payments executive who travels to countries where the merchants don´t take his network's cards. Every restaurant bill and hotel check-out brings the indignity of paying with another brand of card - and giving business to his competitors.

Remember the good ol´ days of lemonade and big front porches? And grandpa with his candies? And-wait; let´s try that again. Remember when the drive-thru bank tellers at your local branch recognized you and sent lollipops for your kids through the pneumatic tube?

House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank is determined not to waste Congress´ last week in session before the July 4 break: He plans to charge ahead with regulatory restructuring hearings. The Senate Banking Committee will also hold a hearing on part of the regulatory restructuring effort. Elsewhere in Washington, the Federal Open Market Committee will meet-though the outcome of that gathering isn´t really a nail-biter. Afterwards, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke will be called to justify Bank of America´s acquisition of Merrill Lynch to Congress.

"Too many cooks," declared the Economist; "basically punts on the question of how to keep it from happening all over again," Paul Krugman wrote in today´s New York Times; "an exercise in political triangulation," says the Washington Post´s Steven Pearlstein.

A recent engagement for a large employer-based credit union gave us a vivid reminder of why credit unions are so well-positioned to outperform the competition in difficult times. Our client had done exceptionally well in signing up employees of the multinational company it serves, but senior management sought our help in devising a strategy to better reach family members and retirees in its field of membership.

It's the 80th Annual Dinner meeting for Pyramid CU. A member, a man in his 30s, raises his hand to ask if he can say a few words. He shares that he's been a member of the CU all his life as were his parents. He compares Pyramid to the famous movie, "It's a Wonderful Life," because CEO Ray Lancaster is their own version of George Bailey. The crowd agrees in the form of loud applause, shouts and cheers. (For the few people who've never enjoyed the movie, an angel shows George Bailey the positive impact he's had on the people in his small town.)

In the end, CUNA decided not to let them eat cake.

During today´s Senate Banking Hearing on the Obama Administration´s regulatory restructuring proposal, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner got cheeky about a chairmanship. What was he really talking about?