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'Did they charge for breathing the air in their lobbies?': Comments of the week

January 3, 2019 10:00 PM

Readers respond to Wells Fargo's latest fine, weigh Sen. Elizabeth Warren's potential bid for president, consider how banks are preparing for climate change and more.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass.
Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Democrat from Massachusetts, speaks at American University in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Thursday, Nov. 29, 2018. Warren said she opposes Nafta 2.0 in the foreign policy speech and will vote against it unless President Donald Trump reopens the agreement and produces a better deal for Americas working families. Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg
On Sen. Elizabeth Warren forming an exploratory committee as she considers a presidential run in 2020:

"As bankers, we can all hope she makes the unlikely decision to retire."

Related: Elizabeth Warren takes major step toward presidential run
Wells Fargo sign
A Wells Fargo & Co. bank branch stands at night in New York, U.S., on Saturday, April 11, 2015. Wells Fargo & Co. is scheduled to release earnings figures on April 14. Photographer: Craig Warga/Bloomberg
On Wells Fargo agreeing to pay $575 million to the states for aggressive sales practices and for several cases where customers were overcharged certain fees:

"Did they charge for breathing the air in their lobbies?"

Related: Wells Fargo to pay state regulators $575M over phony accounts, other scandals
chase
A man stands outside a JPMorgan Chase & Co. bank branch in New York, U.S., on Wednesday, April 14, 2010. JPMorgan Chase & Co. said a "broad-based" economic recovery boosted first-quarter earnings 55 percent, surprising analysts with record fixed-income trading revenue and a better-than-expected outlook for consumer credit. Photographer: Jin Lee/Bloomberg
On an argument that JPMorgan's expansion strategy poses risks to banks of all sizes:

"Ha, I wish that was the largest threat to banks. The largest threat to banks is greed and pride, if bankers can keep that in check they will do just fine regardless of who moves into the neighborhood."

Related: Biggest competitive threat to banks is one of their own
im-photo-mock-cyber-attacks.jpg
Another reader weighs in on the idea that JPMorgan's branch growth in new markets could challenge competitors:

"I see a bigger threat to the banking system, only mine is cyber security. With all the massive breaches, isn't it inevitable that one day a banker will wake up only to find that significant deposit accounts have been drained? The only surprise is that it hasn't happened yet."

Related: Biggest competitive threat to banks is one of their own
mobile payments
Man holding a mobile phone and a pay
On an argument by one academic that allowing customers to access loans and other products online too easily puts them at risk for making bad financial decisions:

"Not rhetorically incorrect but decidedly behind the curve and times. As we tend to say in the Bluegrass State, shutting the barn door is always a good idea but less of one after the horses are out."

Related: Why banks shouldn't make online banking too easy
Smokestacks for story on climate change and banks, pollution
Steam rises from cooling towers at a coal-fired power plant West Virginia, U.S. Photographer: Luke Sharrett/Bloomberg
On a look at how banks are preparing for climate change:

"An important topic that banks will increasingly have to grapple with over the coming months and years, as investor pressure and, in some places, regulation are starting to pile up! Banks have a huge role to play – both in terms of managing exposure to assets with high climate-related risks, but also in terms of harnessing the opportunities brought about by the low-carbon transition in the green finance space."

Related: Why banks should stress-test for climate change
ill-dot-rural-road.jpg
On an argument that the Farm Credit Service should be expanded to help address a shortage of banking services in rural areas:

"As an FLBA employee during the 'crisis' of the 80's, I experienced the good, bad and ugly. Competition is not bad, but competition must be fair -- a level playing field. The tax benefits they enjoy enable them to offer 'lower' rates than our locally owned community bank can offer and allows them to dividend back 'untaxed' profits to owners. Stock based on loan size? Not anymore! Around here, they try to move underperforming loans out. Does this serve the rural community?"

Related: Rural America needs an expanded Farm Credit System
Digital banking Fintech Election 2020 Policymaking Cyber security Cyber attacks Data security Elizabeth Warren
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