In spite of decades of studies showing the long-term cost benefits of dollar coins over Federal Reserve Notes, and the fact that most of the world’s leading economies have already switched to coins for similar denominations, the U.S. has remained steadfast in its use of printed dollar bills. So once again, lawmakers in the Senate are making the push to gradually make the transition from print to mint. [More]
federal reserve
Sen. Warren: Why Can Banks Commit Crimes But Get Away Without Admitting Guilt?
By 5.15.13
Back on Valentine’s Day, rookie U.S. Senator — and longtime consumer advocate — Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts showed little love for the nation’s bank regulators, asking if any of them — the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Securities and Exchange Commission, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation — had actually taken a large financial institution to trial instead of settling. None of them could provide a quality answer at the time, but Warren has not let them off the hook. [More]
Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley Ready To Drop $247 Million In Mail To Victims Of Foreclosure Abuses
By 4.29.13
Back in January, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley announced a $557 million settlement “for deficient practices in mortgage loan servicing and foreclosure processing.” Later this week, the chunk of that money earmarked for payouts to affected consumers will be going out in the mail. [More]
Coming Soon To A Billfold Near You: New $100 Bills
By 4.24.13
Attention currency fans, and fans of images that shift as you move them! New $100 dollar bills with exciting counterfeiting-proof features are coming soon from the Federal Reserve. The good news is that they probably will not melt, but they look a little different from bills currently circulating. [More]
Some Victims Of Shady Foreclosure Practices Report Trouble Cashing Settlement Checks
By 4.17.13
As if going through the nightmare of foreclosure proceedings wasn’t bad enough, some of the victims who have been compensated as a result of a settlement between big banks and U.S. regulators can’t even get their darn checks to cash. Most of those borrowers only received between $300 and $500, and have been told their checks were rejected when trying to get their money. [More]
GAO Calls Out Bank Regulators For Mucking Up Foreclosure Reviews
By 4.4.13
Back in April 2011, in the wake of the robosigning scandal and in light of numerous instances of erroneous seizures, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Reserve System ordered independent reviews of the foreclosure process at the country’s 14 largest mortgage servicers. Now, two years on, the Govt. Accountability Office is saying these regulators allowed the review process to become inconsistent and overly complex. [More]
Treasury Department: Yeah, About That $1 Trillion Platinum Coin? Not Gonna Happen
By 1.14.13
Although the idea of a trillion-dollar platinum coin swooping in to be deposited at the Federal Reserve and save us from hitting the debt ceiling is a nice one, it’s just not gonna happen, says the Treasury Department. Even if it did, the Federal Reserve says it wouldn’t accept the deposit anyway so there’s no point in talking about it. Thanks for spoiling the fun, guys. [More]
FBI: Baggage Handler Was Arrested Because That $20K In Uncirculated Bills Doesn’t Belong To him
By 10.24.12
One pretty blatant tip that a whole bunch of money isn’t yours? If the bills aren’t even in circulation yet. The FBI doesn’t believe that $20,000 worth of $100 bills belong to a US Airways baggage handler for that very reason and arrested him yesterday for swiping them from a shipment of money headed to the Federal Reserve in East Rutherford, N.J. [More]
Fed: Unemployment Wouldn't Be So High If People Weren't So Darn Uncertain About Economy
By 9.17.12
When I was a tiny little lad, my coach said the only thing keeping me from being a great soccer player was confidence… and my utter inability to kick the ball in anything resembling a straight line, but also my confidence. Now some number-crunchers at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco say that the country’s unemployment rate would be a touch lower if we had all just been less uncertain about the economy. [More]
Fed Chair Bernanke: Smart Consumers Are Good For The Whole Economy
By 8.7.12
Too often when people talk about being a good consumer or being educated about financial matters, the big picture is ignored in favor of images of individual wealth and well-being. But Federal Reserve Chairman Ben “It rhymes with stanky” Bernanke says that it’s really in everyone’s best interest for us to be smart about what we do with our money. [More]
Fed Orders Review Of Thousands Of Morgan Stanley Foreclosures
By 4.3.12
Yesterday, Morgan Stanley finally finished selling off its one remaining unit involved in servicing subprime mortgages. Today, the Federal Reserve gave Morgan Stanley some unwelcome news: It must review thousands of foreclosures processed by that now-former subsidiary. [More]
Bernanke: "Far Too Early To Declare Victory" Over Recession
By 3.27.12
For the last two years, all upbeat statements about the economy have been followed with a huge “but,” and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben “Feel the” Bernanke isn’t going to buck that trend. [More]
Federal Reserve On Verge Of Proposing New Capital Rules For Banks
By 12.20.11
The Federal Reserve is expected to roll out new rules soon that could make big banks keep more capital reserves on hand, presumably leaving them with less money to lend. The idea is to make banks act more responsible with their stacks of chips and not need the government to bail them out. [More]
If Inflation Droops, Federal Reserve May Pump It Up
By 9.29.11
It’s tough for consumers to rationalize how inflation could be a good thing, especially if they haven’t received pay increases in years, but increasing costs are believed by many to be a sign of a healthy economy. That’s why Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said Wednesday that the central bank will keep a close eye on inflation levels and may altar monetary policy to maintain the phenomenon if prices start to level off. [More]
Little Banks To Big Banks: Can You Please Stop Merging For A Little Bit?
By 9.20.11
With folks at the Federal Reserve already reportedly concerned that the sale of ING Direct to Capital One could create another too-big-to-fail bank, a group representing the nation’s smaller banks has raised its voice in concern. [More]
Banks Must Produce Living Wills To Tell Regulators How To Liquidate Them
By 9.14.11
No one likes to imagine their own undoing, but that’s what the government has asked the largest American banks to do, mapping out liquidation plans in “living wills” that will help financial regulators pick apart their carcasses if they go under. The banks have until next year to submit their plans, which are mandated by the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. [More]
Report: Fed Concerned Capital One/ING Direct Merger Could Create Another Too-Big-To-Fail Bank
By 9.12.11
Back in July, Capital One announced a deal to purchase online bank ING Direct USA for around $9 billion. And even though Cap One tried hard to quell ING customers’ screams of “nooooooo,” the folks at the Federal Reserve are reportedly a bit worried that the deal might create another bank so big that its failure would have a disastrous impact on the economy. [More]
