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Elizabeth Warren Strikes Back as Citigroup Tries to Blackmail the Democratic Party

Published on naked capitalism, by Yves Smith, March 29, 2015.

An unusually move by a thin-skinned too big to fail bank, Citigroup, to slap down the finance-skeptic faction of the Democratic party appears to be backfiring … //

… Warren fingered Citigroup’s extensive connections to the Executive branch when she fought the addition of a rider to a must-pass spending bill that would eliminate a Dodd Frank provisions to force banks to stop trading certain derivatives in taxpayer-backstopped entities (the so-called swaps pushout rule). As you’ll see below, not only did Warren have the bad taste to point out that the current Treasury secretary is a Citigroup alum, and that Sandy Weill, Citigroup chairman, had offered Timothy Geithner the opportunity to run the bank, she also said that Dodd Frank had come up short by not forcing Citigroup’s breakup. If you’ve not seen this speech, you need to watch it. You’ll understand why Citigroup is desperate to find a way to leash and collar Warren.   Continuer la lecture de « Elizabeth Warren Strikes Back as Citigroup Tries to Blackmail the Democratic Party »

… und noch dies …

The Troika’s Leverage Over Greece: The Ongoing Bank Run

Published on naked capitalism, by Yves Smith, March 27, 2015.

A substantial portion of the site’s commentariat has wanted to believe that the Greek government’s defiance of the will of the Troika has been effective, either in and of itself, or as a means of preparing the Greek public and buying time before a Grexit … // Continuer la lecture de « The Troika’s Leverage Over Greece: The Ongoing Bank Run »