FDIC's Bair Pressures Citi: Get Your House In Order

New York Times:

Tough words from Washington arrived by phone on Tuesday at Citigroup headquarters in New York.

On the line was Sheila C. Bair, the head of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation - and a powerful behind-the-scenes player at the giant bank. She was calling to press directors once again to put Citigroup's troubled house in order.

Read the whole story: New York Times

Comments

[5hy56]

1st 100 days - There are 2.9 million more people unemployed in May than there were

unemployed in January. The unemployment rate went from 7.6% to 9.4%.
Since May 2008, we have lost 5.5 million jobs. The biggest losers were:
Manufacturing 1.5 million lost
Finance & Prof Serv 1.5 million lost
Construction 1.1 million lost
Retail & Leisure 1.3 million lost

one of my new favorite finance websites: href=".http://kl.am/tsc ">Econ & Finance Articles Updated Daily

Having said that, unless we rethink the way we use our wealth, this world is doomed.

al-Waleed bin Talal, however he came by his wealth is in a position to make a difference.

Instead he chooses conspicuous self-consumption.

[lvdragonlady]

Just because some of the banks paid back the TARP means nothing more then they found a quick way to generate 'income', in the form of higher fees across the board. When people get tired of banks and their bs and start moving their accounts elsewhere, watch them come running back for help.
Citi, like the rest of the banks, are still trying to play by the old rules and this will come back to haunt them.

[doublels]

This guy should be dethroned and the company split up. This is no different than the robber barons of a 100 years ago.

[Sundialsvc4]

It is already "over," and it has been so for quite some time. The notion that banking, finance and insurance could be combined under one roof was insanity ... and illegal for seventy years with very good reason.

But there's more. When these houses of cards began to collapse, their directors turned to crime: securities fraud, usury, swindling, extortion and bribery, among many others.

That's what governmental agencies are for: to represent the collective interests of (and let me spell it out for you guys in big letters): THREE HUNDRED SIX MILLION, SIX HUNDRED FORTY-TWO THOUSAND, EIGHTY-THREE OTHER PEOPLE (more or less, at this particular millisecond as I am writing this).

Call me an old fogey if you want to (I'm not...), but I actually think that what three hundred million people have to say, and what affects their daily lives (although the bankers cannot conceive of it, it also affects theirs...) actually means something.

[robjh1]

This dragon should be slain and put out of its misery.

[sc300nc]

Agreed, these too big to fail companies should have been left withering on the vine.

[Olby's Unhappy'Girlfriend]

only 26 posts? has the HP banking blowharding seen its day, already!?

[mikekc]

More stern tongue-lashings for bankers. That is the extent of regulation and oversight in this country. If banks fail, they should be seized by the FDIC, not told to get their house in order. What's next - are you going to call CEO Pandit and hang up on him, or maybe ring his doorbell and run? We follow the laws to a T when a citizen files bankruptcy. Yet all that happens to bankers is we give them billions or even trillions and then consider corrective words that wouldn't scare a 15 year old reform. Pathetic.

[ThatOne4Me]

if only the FDIC were truly independent. they have to battle with the Treasury and the Fed Reserve.

[blueken]

Ring his doorbell and run. Your funny. Maybe a flamming bag of poo as well? Good luck getting past the armed security guy at his gate.

[AlteSoldier]

The Federal Reverve lost over $5 billion in the first quarter of 2009 on securities acquired during last year's bailouts ...

... of AIG and Bear Stearns, according to a new report issued by the Fed on Wednesday.

The drop in the value of the holdings, including mortgage-backed and other securities, brings the paper loss on the Bear and AIG assets now held by the Fed to more than $14.5 billion.

Since the Fed still holds those assets, the hope is that they will recover value as the economy turns around, letting the goernment if not turn a profit at least take a smaller loss on the sale.

The new report by the Fed, which will be issued monthly, comes in response to demands from lawmakers and others for more detailed information on the government bailout.



Politico

Question, How does the Fed pass on losses to the US Taxpayer since the Fed is a privately owned bank?

[tomasedison]

Citi is too busy charging 28%, 30% and 36% for their credit cards, and collecting all their $35 late fees from their credit card holders.

Citi gave up on 'real banking' years ago in favor of turning a quick buck with 'marketing' gimmicks.Citi indeed does suck !

[sachazg]

It's about time someone holds their feet to the fire... citi you SUCK!

[jerrypl]

CITI, one of our financial crime syndicate companies controlling things. Tough words are only words unless they are joined with tough action. President Obama has backed away from tough economic actions.

http://eye-on-washington.blogspot.com

[jsarets]

Financial crises are really international bank wars where the largest and most powerful banks induce a panic and then swallow up the banks that fail.

It's not always about performance. Political connections are paramount. For example, somebody obviously wanted Lehman to die, and that interest must have been more powerful.

Everything that's happened so far has worked out gloriously for JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs. Bear, Lehman, Merrill, and Wachovia are all gone. BoA and Citi are in trouble. They were huge beneficiaries of the AIG bailouts.

When this crisis is behind us, JPM will be the dominant commercial bank and GS will be the dominant investment bank. They will emerge the winners of the great bank war of 2008.

And we'll have moved one step closer to the ultimate goal of a global banking monopoly.

[schatsie]

Seems to me that you are spot on....scary a global banking monopoly....

[ThatOne4Me]

right you are. JP has been swallowing smaller banks in NYC. I remember before Bush got into office, they had a hard time expanding to other states, they were not welcome.

same thing happened with Macys. they bought out the competition and now their sales are down.

[munki]

Thank you for your services...

It is time for you to go... Mr. P, oh another P like SP

[DASChicago]

Mrs. Blair has been spot on, on closing all of the rouge banks whose hand are of filth!

CITI, has no new ideas or anyone else to Gamble with. Walls are caving? BoA should be next! Ha!

[loki]

Pressure by this gov is a forewarning that a very wealthy person should prepare to get a public tongue lashing, but dont worry, on the low down they will hand them a huge amount a taxpayer money and kiss their arses in private to make up for this political stunt.