Happy Travels
Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke may have gotten the break from the Beltway that he needed.
The central banker, who was in Philadelphia for a conference on community development, had a chance to tour a commercial shipyard, as well as Tasty Baking Co., famous for its cream-filled chocolate cupcakes.
"I just had a great time, the best time I've had in a while," Bernanke said Thursday after the tours, according to The Washington Post.
During his tour, Bernanke got a chance to meet with several employees and see how the Tasty Baking's facility produces thousands of cupcakes a day. He was joined by Charles Pizzi, the company's president, and Charles Plosser, president of the Philadelphia Fed. At the shipyard, Bernanke also met with Lothar Budike, president of a start-up company called Light-Pod, which is developing a lighting system for vessels. "How many sailors does it take to screw in a lightbulb?" Bernanke asked, joking.
"That's better than jokes about economists," Plosser said.
Superwomen
Time has unveiled its new Committee to Save the World.
The cover of this week's issue of the magazine features Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Sheila Bair, Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Mary Schapiro, and Elizabeth Warren, the head of the Congressional Oversight Panel, with the headline "Female Sheriffs of Wall Street."
The cover is a gender shift from Time's 1999 "Committee" cover with then-Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin, Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan and Deputy Treasury Secretary Larry Summers.
Even though the three women have played a large role in trying to repair the damage caused by the financial crisis, they discussed the challenges in having their voices heard. "We generally worked well together, but there were times when I felt the guys kind of got in a room and made a decision and then called me in," Bair said in the article, referring to other regulators. "And when I would ask questions or push back, I was being 'difficult.' "
FDIC Appointment
Thomas Dujenski has been appointed regional director of the FDIC's Atlanta district.
Dujenski, 51, who has a 27-year career at the agency, had been the Dallas regional director. He succeeds Doreen Eberley, the regional director of New York, who had been overseeing the Atlanta region on an interim basis.
Kristie Elmquist, deputy regional director, will serve as acting regional director in Dallas until that post is filled.
Dujenski will head the FDIC's bank supervision in Atlanta, Florida, Georgia, the Carolinas, Virginia and West Virginia. The region includes more than 700 FDIC-insured institutions, with total assets of $454 billion.
New Faces at ICBA
The Independent Community Bankers of America hired two new lobbyists — Brian Cooney and Alan Keller — last week.
Cooney was named vice president and legislative counsel in the group's government relations department. Keller was named director of legislative policy.
Cooney previously worked for 12 years as senior vice president for public policy and government at the Manufactured Housing Institute. He also served as director of congressional and political affairs for the American Institute of Certified Accountants and as associate director in the legislative counsel's office at the Mortgage Bankers Association.
Keller was vice president for federal government relations at JPMorgan Chase & Co. and previously was deputy executive secretary for the Treasury Department.
Banks Back Dragons
Banks' return to profits amid a still-struggling economy has Jon Stewart on "The Daily Show" baffled.
On Thursday, Stewart reminded viewers of the Comedy Central program that more than a year ago taxpayers gave the banks $10 billion to $25 billion apiece "to stave off a catastrophic implosion of their bonuses — I mean the economy — which apparently depends on them."
Banks even made money regardless if the stock market was up, down, unchanged or worse.
On "January 25, Kiss rang the opening bell," Stewart said. "You would think that would give investors pause, but no, they made money! On March 12, dragons attacked Wall Street. Banks still made money. Turns out the banks had cornered the market on fire."
