How Citigroup wrote the US budget and effectively repealed the Dodd-Frank bank reforms (video)


On 5 December 2014 the US congress approved an “omnibudget” that included provisions drafted by the banking behemoth Citigroup that repealed a key part of the Dodd-Frank Act banking reforms requiring banks to place their high risk derivatives businesses into … Continue reading

Tim Geithner fails the Jon Stewart stress test (Daily Show extended interview video)

Jon Stewart was exasperated by Tim Geithner's analysis

Whilst up to 10 million home owning Americans continue to face foreclosure as a result of the irresponsible and predatory bank lending that characterised the period up to the Lehman’s bankruptcy, the banks that caused the crash are once again in … Continue reading

How banks have hoodwinked you over high frequency trading (video)


I have just heard one of the poorest interviews on the subject of high frequency trading that I have had the misfortune to come across on the usually excellent Today programme on BBC Radio 4. The interviewer, Evan Davis, had the … Continue reading

Strong regulation is why the Canadian banking system has had no financial crises in 150 years (video)


I promised in a recent post (If Robert Peston thinks that it’s time to stop bashing the bankers he’s wrong) to show you that an innovative, stable and fully functional financial system that avoids regular (or any) crashes is possible.  The United States (and consequently most of … Continue reading

Investment banks & bankers: too big (headed) to jail (video)


John Oliver on the travesty of justice that is banks and bankers negotiating with regulators to pay ‘huge’ fines (in reality no more than a few days worth of sales) for committing financial crimes rather than serving jail time. To add insult … Continue reading

If Robert Peston thinks that it’s time to stop bashing the bankers he’s wrong (video)


On 30 November, Robert Peston published an article on BBC Online that made my stomach churn.  In the article, entitled “New City same as old City?” Peston reported on two significant news stories of the day. The first was about the … Continue reading