Volcker is a former Fed chief and served during the 80′s. He never fought for jobs first and foremost, though that is a mission of the Fed. These days he is making a come back by pushing for policies in the public interest. The Volcker proposal to break up the banks is gaining some steam, especially since Obama announced he wanted it as a part of regulatory plans going forward. Volcker had a hearing on his ideas and Dodd suprisingly supported them:
“The Obama administration has proposed bold steps to make the financial system less risky. We welcome those ideas,” said Dodd. “The first would prohibit banks – or financial institutions that contain banks – from owning, investing in, or sponsoring a hedge fund, a private equity fund, or any proprietary trading operation unrelated to serving its customers… I strongly support this proposal. I think it has great merit.”
“The second would be a cap on the market share of liabilities for the largest financial firms, which would supplement the current caps on the market share of their deposits. I think the administration is headed in the right direction with these two proposals,” Dodd continued.
Paul Volcker, Chairman of the President’s Economic Recovery Advisory Board and Former Chairman of the Federal Reserve, and Deputy Treasury Secretary Neal S. Wolin testified at the hearing.
The Committee will hold a second hearing on the proposals on Thursday.
Testimony and webcast will be available after the hearing here.
Archein