'It's Good to Be a Banker Again': Comments of the Week
September 25, 2015 7:30 AM
American Banker readers share their views on the most pressing banking topics of the week. Comments are excerpted from reader response sections of AmericanBanker.com articles and our social media platforms.
On reports that luxurious banking conventions featuring perks like wine tastings and falconry lessons are back in style:
"Profits up 7%, skeet shooting at the Greenbrier. It's good to be a banker again."
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On the reasoning behind giving bank chiefs like Bank of America head Brian Moynihan the additional role of board chairman:
"I have heard plenty of valid arguments for separating the chairman and CEO roles, but none for vesting them in the same person except that it's how most U.S. companies do it. Having an independent chairman, and not an inherently conflicted combined chairman and CEO, is simply sound governance practice. Why wait until something goes wrong (as it did at B of A) to do what should have already been done?"
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On new revelations about the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's methods for detecting discrimination in auto lending:
"The most disturbing piece for me was the agency's apparent unwillingness to understand legitimate business risks associated with the underlying asset class (i.e. the motor vehicle itself). A used [or] new car carry different risks and risk of repayment in the event of accident or destruction of the asset. Consider the rate of total replacement coverage insurance and/or collision coverage on the two types of cars and the risk to the lender is obvious. It's not clear that no discrimination took place. However, the unwillingness of the agency to consider a viewpoint that they admitted was 'reasonable' seems like they were looking to increase the number of discriminated parties for the sake of 'setting an example.'"
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On potential conflicts in banks' efforts to embrace easy-to-use technology while bolstering security:
"It seems to me that there are mutually exclusive technological advancements being promoted in the financial industry. We are advocating remote transactional activity and 'ease' of communicating while we are legislating tighter security against hackers, and we are discussing replacing money with bitcoins in order to accommodate automatic payments while we are strengthening [anti-money laundering] law and the penalties for violation."
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On the Justice Department's renewed commitment to prosecuting high-ranking white-collar criminals:
"Given [former Attorney General Eric] Holder's current professional address [at corporate law firm Covington & Burling], it has become obvious that no real change can occur unless the open revolving door is legally closed."
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On calls for unity among big and small banks from incoming American Bankers Association head Rob Nichols:
"I appreciate Rob Nichols' comments regarding unity. An association that represent[s] all banks not just bank factions is important. It forces the industry to find solutions around the board table rather than letting Congress sort it out for us that never ends well."
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On the news that the inspector general of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. cleared a top attorney at the agency of accusations that he lied during testimony about Operation Choke Point:
"Hmm
the FDIC investigates itself and determines no violation. What a surprise."
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On findings that banks continue to struggle with credit quality despite improvements made in the years since the financial crisis:
"Banks are reluctant to talk about troubled assets because they claim there are none left, but the data suggests otherwise."
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