Friday, May 21, 2010

"Financial Reform"? No

Ticker identified a few deficiencies in the Financial Reform Bank Happiness Act.

The most-important part of the bill, stopping derivative abuse, was watered down to the point of irrelevance. The exceptions and exemptions that remain for OTC trading are big enough to drive 200 West Street through - sideways - and Goldman will do exactly that.

Nor did we re-impose a hard leverage cap. You know, the one that existed before 2004?

Nor did we reinstate a hard deposit cap limitation.

Nor did we fix The Fed illegally usurping the appropriation power of Congress or impose an actual audit on them.

Nor did we fix the off-balance sheet or "mark to fantasy" BS

However, several forests full of trees will be killed to print the notifications and additional paperwork necessary to either 1) have a bank account or 2) borrow 50 cents for a cuppa joe.

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