Bankers Dislike Regulatory Proposals

The American Banking Association,a trade group,is uncomfortable with the current climate in Washington.Ed Yingling,ABA president,says there's a general situation that is of concern to bankers:that the language portrays banks as risky.The financial crisis should be seen as international in origin,Mr.Yingling believes.The Obama administration's definition of proprietary trading means banks can't have a bond portfolio,in his estimation.All banks have one,Mr.Yingling indicated.
The U.S. has been the world leader for financial services for many years,Ed Yingling recalled.Now only six U.S. banks are in the top 50 of the world.Without coordination of regulation with international authorities,there would be no U.S. banks among the global leaders,Mr.Yingling warned.
Under the Obama administrations proposals,banks' share of the capital markets would be capped at 10%;they could no longer own hedge funds;and proprietary trading,or trading banks do for their own profit,would be taken away from them,resulting ultimately in less money for lending,critics of the proposals point out.

Bankers Blame Accounting Rule

Mark to market accounting has made the financial crisis worse than it had to be,said Ed Yingling,CEO of the American Banking Association,an industry trade group.Around the world,there's a growing feeling that mark to market is pro-cyclical.We need to look at how collateralized debt obligations are valued.Mark to market doesn't represent the true value of assets.It is incompatible with a banking system that makes long term loans and investments,Mr.Yingling argued.The markets are completely dysfunctional.That accounting rule should not be wiping out billions of dollars worth of capital,Mr.Yingling bitterly complained.

Banking Trade Group Annoyed

Ed Yingling,President and CEO of the American Banking Association,a trade group,has denied that the financial crisis is a banking malaise.This is not a crisis in the FDIC-insured banking field;it is a Wall Street crisis,he insisted.These banks by and large are in good shape,Mr.Yingling said.We have an industry with almost 1.5 trillion in assets.A lot of this crisis is just speculation on Wall Street,Mr.Yingling remarked bitterly.