Banks Are Now Pleading Guilty to Crimes.

[Cigar]

So Why Aren't They Being Punished Like Criminals?http://www.slate.com/content/dam/slate/blogs/moneybox/2015/05/20/big_banks_plead_guilty_to_fixing_the_foreign_excha nge_market_will_they_face/loretta_lynch.jpg.CROP.promo-mediumlarge.jpg

Not so long ago, federal prosecutors were simply terrified by the idea of what might happen if they ever brought criminal charges against a major bank. They worried that the consequences of a felony conviction might cause a large financial institution to collapse and wreak havoc on Wall Street, much as the accounting firm Arthur Andersen went bust after it was convicted for its role in the Enron scandal.

So the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission landed on a compromise. When bankers got caught doing something illegal, the government asked them to pay a hefty fine and sign a "deferred prosecution agreement," in which they promised to mend their behavior forever more. The government lawyers got to trumpet billion-dollar penalties. The banks got to go back to their businesses without much longterm damage. For everyone else, it was pretty clear Wall Street had simply gotten "too big to jail."

Lately, the government's lawyers have gotten a little braver. Attorney General Loretta Lynch announced Wednesday that four of the world's largest banks had pleaded guilty to criminal charges that their traders had conspired to fix the massive and poorly regulated foreign exchange market. Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, Barclays, and the Royal Bank of Scotland all admitted to being felons. Meanwhile, Switzerland's UBS, pleaded guilty to manipulating the benchmark Libor interbank lending rate. The five banks are ponying up $5.6 billion in fines.

But that's basically the extent of the punishment. As the New York Times reports:


For the banks, though, life as a felon is likely to carry more symbolic shame than practical problems. Although they could be technically barred by American regulators from managing mutual funds or corporate pension plans or perform certain other securities activities, the banks have obtained waivers from the Securities and Exchange Commission that will allow them to conduct business as usual. In fact, the cases were not announced until after the S.E.C. had time to act.


So, federal prosecutors are now confident they can bring criminal charges against major banks without ushering in a financial catastrophe, as long as they water down the consequences. Is this progress?

Source (http://www.slate.com/blogs/moneybox/2015/05/20/big_banks_plead_guilty_to_fixing_the_foreign_excha nge_market_will_they_face.html).


Question; would any of this be happening if the President was a Republican? :rollseyes:

[PolWatch]

My father told me years ago that if you steal $5.00 you are called a crook. If you steal $5 million, you are called Mr.....doesn't look like much has changed in 50+ years.

[Peter1469]

So Why Aren't They Being Punished Like Criminals?

http://www.slate.com/content/dam/slate/blogs/moneybox/2015/05/20/big_banks_plead_guilty_to_fixing_the_foreign_excha nge_market_will_they_face/loretta_lynch.jpg.CROP.promo-mediumlarge.jpg

Not so long ago, federal prosecutors were simply terrified by the idea of what might happen if they ever brought criminal charges against a major bank. They worried that the consequences of a felony conviction might cause a large financial institution to collapse and wreak havoc on Wall Street, much as the accounting firm Arthur Andersen went bust after it was convicted for its role in the Enron scandal.

So the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission landed on a compromise. When bankers got caught doing something illegal, the government asked them to pay a hefty fine and sign a "deferred prosecution agreement," in which they promised to mend their behavior forever more. The government lawyers got to trumpet billion-dollar penalties. The banks got to go back to their businesses without much longterm damage. For everyone else, it was pretty clear Wall Street had simply gotten "too big to jail."

Lately, the government's lawyers have gotten a little braver. Attorney General Loretta Lynch announced Wednesday that four of the world's largest banks had pleaded guilty to criminal charges that their traders had conspired to fix the massive and poorly regulated foreign exchange market. Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, Barclays, and the Royal Bank of Scotland all admitted to being felons. Meanwhile, Switzerland's UBS, pleaded guilty to manipulating the benchmark Libor interbank lending rate. The five banks are ponying up $5.6 billion in fines.

But that's basically the extent of the punishment. As the New York Times reports:

For the banks, though, life as a felon is likely to carry more symbolic shame than practical problems. Although they could be technically barred by American regulators from managing mutual funds or corporate pension plans or perform certain other securities activities, the banks have obtained waivers from the Securities and Exchange Commission that will allow them to conduct business as usual. In fact, the cases were not announced until after the S.E.C. had time to act.


So, federal prosecutors are now confident they can bring criminal charges against major banks without ushering in a financial catastrophe, as long as they water down the consequences. Is this progress?

Source (http://www.slate.com/blogs/moneybox/2015/05/20/big_banks_plead_guilty_to_fixing_the_foreign_excha nge_market_will_they_face.html).


Question; would any of this be happening if the President was a Republican? :rollseyes:

The other part of the story is that although banks have paid big fines, they have been allowed, via government regulation, to consolidate into even larger entities and reap profits much much larger than their fines. We went from 45,000 banks to 8,000 - with most of those owned by the big 4 (I am not linking this shift to 2008).

We should have done what was done in the 1980s after the S&L crisis and what Iceland did after the 2008 crash.

[texan]

Thanks Obama.

[Peter1469]

Thanks Obama.

Bush was feckless as well.

[Susan B. Anthony]

Banks should go to jail.

[Brett Nortje]

They stole money, they lose money. this makes sense. if anyone presses charges, legally, it should be the bank. these are individuals within the bank, of course.

If they want to punish the country for the actions of the president, then a lot of innocent people will lose. i mean, think of all the money in those banks? these are owned by people that need them, yes?

By the same token, if you were to account for genocide in various areas of the world, you could see the countries facing sanctions? i mean, what else can you do, morally?

These markets are created to empower people. by removing the bank, all the money will be lost.

If they want to press charges, they need to go through the bank to get to the people behind this. i doubt the owner would be a part of it, so going through the owner to get to the people doing it would be the only option.

But, if the owner is behind it, then they need to open a state owned bank, move all the money into that, and send everyone to jail that was involved - by way of auditing.

Maybe this is a job for the iceman?

[Peter1469]

Banks should go to jail.

Failed banks should be allowed to fail, not be bailed out.

Bankers who committed fraud should be jailed.

[donttread]

So Why Aren't They Being Punished Like Criminals?

http://www.slate.com/content/dam/slate/blogs/moneybox/2015/05/20/big_banks_plead_guilty_to_fixing_the_foreign_excha nge_market_will_they_face/loretta_lynch.jpg.CROP.promo-mediumlarge.jpg

Not so long ago, federal prosecutors were simply terrified by the idea of what might happen if they ever brought criminal charges against a major bank. They worried that the consequences of a felony conviction might cause a large financial institution to collapse and wreak havoc on Wall Street, much as the accounting firm Arthur Andersen went bust after it was convicted for its role in the Enron scandal.

So the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission landed on a compromise. When bankers got caught doing something illegal, the government asked them to pay a hefty fine and sign a "deferred prosecution agreement," in which they promised to mend their behavior forever more. The government lawyers got to trumpet billion-dollar penalties. The banks got to go back to their businesses without much longterm damage. For everyone else, it was pretty clear Wall Street had simply gotten "too big to jail."

Lately, the government's lawyers have gotten a little braver. Attorney General Loretta Lynch announced Wednesday that four of the world's largest banks had pleaded guilty to criminal charges that their traders had conspired to fix the massive and poorly regulated foreign exchange market. Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, Barclays, and the Royal Bank of Scotland all admitted to being felons. Meanwhile, Switzerland's UBS, pleaded guilty to manipulating the benchmark Libor interbank lending rate. The five banks are ponying up $5.6 billion in fines.

But that's basically the extent of the punishment. As the New York Times reports:

For the banks, though, life as a felon is likely to carry more symbolic shame than practical problems. Although they could be technically barred by American regulators from managing mutual funds or corporate pension plans or perform certain other securities activities, the banks have obtained waivers from the Securities and Exchange Commission that will allow them to conduct business as usual. In fact, the cases were not announced until after the S.E.C. had time to act.


So, federal prosecutors are now confident they can bring criminal charges against major banks without ushering in a financial catastrophe, as long as they water down the consequences. Is this progress?

Source (http://www.slate.com/blogs/moneybox/2015/05/20/big_banks_plead_guilty_to_fixing_the_foreign_excha nge_market_will_they_face.html).


Question; would any of this be happening if the President was a Republican? :rollseyes:


For freedom to live the megacorps must die. First Monsanto, then the super banks and we'll throw in the Fed as well

[The Sage of Main Street]

My father told me years ago that if you steal $5.00 you are called a crook. If you steal $5 million, you are called Mr.....doesn't look like much has changed in 50+ years. Confiscate the entire net private worth of the top echelon of banksters. That doesn't affect their banks' corporate worth. The second echelon is fully capable of running the banks and wouldn't dare imitate their former bosses.

Limited liability only applies to stockholders, not employees. If the banksters themselves have equity in their firms, that's when the legalized option of "piercing the corporate veil" would take effect, especially since they have betrayed the other stockholders. Their lifetime salaries and bonuses should be judged as theft against the corporate entity.

[Common]

Like ive always said the pigs rob, steal, imbezzle and perpetrate fraud and theft on everyday americans everyday and pay a small fine in comparision to what they stole.

That why I blow past all the corporate cheerleading that goes on here

[donttread]

Confiscate the entire net private worth of the top echelon of banksters. That doesn't affect their banks' corporate worth. The second echelon is fully capable of running the banks and wouldn't dare imitate their former bosses.

Limited liability only applies to stockholders, not employees. If the banksters themselves have equity in their firms, that's when the legalized option of "piercing the corporate veil" would take effect, especially since they have betrayed the other stockholders. Their lifetime salaries and bonuses should be judged as theft against the corporate entity.

Limit limited liability to 500,000 per person

[The Sage of Main Street]

Limit limited liability to 500,000 per person This doesn't have to do with the limited liability of the stockholders, who are mostly absentee owners and only know what the CEOs and VPs tell them is going on. Confiscate the private wealth of those in the loop and give it back to the banks. That loop must turn into a noose.