I still … got nuthin’

( – promoted by buhdydharma )

Last week I admitted that I got nuthin when the latest developments in financial reform were announced. The picture is bleak in regards to any oversite.

Today we have further developments and I have to say once again … I still … got nuthin.

Today we find out the House Banking Chairman Frank caved to the Senates version regarding consumer protection.

WASHINGTON, June 21 (Reuters) – The Federal Reserve, which was criticized for failing to protect consumers in the run-up to the credit crisis, would be the home of a new financial consumer watchdog under an agreement announced on Monday.

The same guys, who as reported last week, were largely responsible for this economic clamity will now be our greatest ally? I … got nuthin’.

But wait … We shall exact our pound of flesh

Groups likely to take the hardest profit hits from the proposed reforms, taken as a whole, include Goldman Sachs (GS.N), Morgan Stanley (MS.N), JPMorgan Chase (JPM.N), Bank of America (BAC.N) and Citigroup (C.N), according to analysts.

The article then goes on to state:

Lawmakers also reached full or partial agreement on measures dealing with credit rating agencies, private equity and hedge funds and raising bank capital standards.

What are these agreements? Well you wont find Reuters reporting it.

Congress must not be too upset with the rating agencies for their performance leading up to the financial crisis after all. On Tuesday, the conference committee determining the fate of the financial regulation bill decided to kill an amendment created by Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) passed in the Senate. This is a huge disappointment, as it could have helped to prevent the conflict-of-interest that currently exists in the ratings industry.

With the Franken amendment gone, the only rule still alive in the bill that seeks reform the rating agencies attempts to shift more liability to them when their ratings are incorrect. This probably won’t hold up in court, however, as the agency assessments are protected by the First Amendment.

Now refer back to the statement about those banks profits going to take a hit. Yeah, I still … got nuthin.

To see some of this info in video try this link. (These guys normally do RE news but cover some interesting points about FinReg and Sen. Dodd. First 3:30 min.)

http://www.thinkbigworksmall.c…