Break up the Banks

While countries in Europe are moving rapidly to break up their biggest financial institutions to recoup taxpayer money and restore competition, the U.S. Congress has failed to take up any measure to break up "too big to fail" institutions that pose a threat to the global economy. A growing list of experts from the left and the right want to see the big banks restructured including former Fed Chairs Paul Volcker and Alan Greenspan. Even John S. Reed, who as CEO of Citibank for 14 years oversaw the merger between Citi and Travelers Group, thinks these giant institutions should be broken up to separate consumer banking from risky trading. The good news? Last week, U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) introduced a bill directing the U.S. Department of the Treasury to BREAK UP THE BANKS!