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Bloomberg News reports a blockbuster this morning (Nov. 10). For more than a year, the U.S. central bank, the Federal Reserve, has made loans to troubled financial institutions; last week, the total hit $2 trillion. This is NOT the Fed's money; it is our money. The Fed has stated publicly that a purpose of this lending is to get so-called toxic assets (near-worthless derivatives such as mortgage-backed paper) off the balance sheets of these banks. So from the beginning, the program was an eyebrow-archer: the Fed was handing out gilt-edged assets in return for junk. Bloomberg asked for details of the loans -- what banks got them, what collateral they posted -- under the U.S. Freedom of Information Act, and also filed a lawsuit Nov. 7. The Fed won't comment on the loans or the lawsuit. Large banks such as Citigroup, Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase, and Wells Fargo refused to comment. A banking industry spokesman claims that "one piece of information standing alone could undermine confidence in the system." Such nonsense. Actually, the refusal to reveal information could do even more to undermine confidence. Rep. Barney Frank, Democrat of Massachusetts, head of the House Financial Services Committee, said the Fed's disclosure is sufficient, and said he had discussed the matter with Timothy F. Geithner, president of the New York Fed, and Geithner allegedly gave the nod to the secrecy. If true, that should knock Geithner out of consideration to be the new treasury secretary.
Bloomberg News reports a blockbuster this morning (Nov. 10). For more than a year, the U.S. central bank, the Federal Reserve, has made loans to troubled financial institutions; last week, the total hit $2 trillion. This is NOT the Fed's money; it is our money. The Fed has stated publicly that a purpose of this lending is to get so-called toxic assets (near-worthless derivatives such as mortgage-backed paper) off the balance sheets of these banks. So from the beginning, the program was an eyebrow-archer: the Fed was handing out gilt-edged assets in return for junk. Bloomberg asked for details of the loans -- what banks got them, what collateral they posted -- under the U.S. Freedom of Information Act, and also filed a lawsuit Nov. 7. The Fed won't comment on the loans or the lawsuit. Large banks such as Citigroup, Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase, and Wells Fargo refused to comment. A banking industry spokesman claims that "one piece of information standing alone could undermine confidence in the system." Such nonsense. Actually, the refusal to reveal information could do even more to undermine confidence. Rep. Barney Frank, Democrat of Massachusetts, head of the House Financial Services Committee, said the Fed's disclosure is sufficient, and said he had discussed the matter with Timothy F. Geithner, president of the New York Fed, and Geithner allegedly gave the nod to the secrecy. If true, that should knock Geithner out of consideration to be the new treasury secretary.