Home

Chairman Ben Bernanke

Fed invites Congress to review AIG rescue

Wed, 01/20/2010 - 10:54 by Rakhi Kaptiyal

Washington -- U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said he would welcome a congressional review of the central bank's bailout of American International Group Inc.

Bernanke said in a letter to Acting Comptroller General Gene Dodaro that the Fed would allow the Government Accountability Office access to "all records and personnel necessary" for an audit of the AIG bailout, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday.

The letter could be a step ahead of a Congressional mandate to open the books concerning AIG, as a House committee has scheduled a hearing next week to investigate why some large banks were paid in full on credit default swaps that involved taxpayer funding.

Ben Bernanke wins approval for second term

Fri, 12/18/2009 - 15:01 by Ishita Sood

Washington, December 18 -- Chairman of Federal Reserve, Ben Bernanke, got a four year term extension Thursday, due to the Senate Banking Committee’s votes.

Bernanke's the Man (of the Year)?

Thu, 12/17/2009 - 15:49 by Alyce Lomax

Time has decided: Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is 2009's Person of the Year. I like to think of 2009 as the The Year of the "What the [word my editor deleted]?!" as moral hazard issues swamped the market. For a year like that, I guess Bernanke is indeed the Person.

Dodd unveils stringent financial reforms

Wed, 11/11/2009 - 14:27 by Ishita Sood

Washington, November 11 -- Connecticut Democrat and Senator Christopher Dodd unveiled a reform bill on Tuesday that will impose higher capital requirements on financial institutions.

Bernanke presses Congress for reforms

Fri, 10/23/2009 - 21:54 by surajdogra

Chatham, Mass. -- U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke again called for regulatory reform, specifically prodding Congress to back up regulators with stricter banking laws.

"Regulators and supervisors can do a great deal, but comprehensive financial reform requires action by the Congress," Bernanke said in Chatham, Mass., in remarks prepared for the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston's 54th Economic Conference.

Bernanke steered away from remarks on current bank policy, despite investor interest in moves the Open Market Committee might make while the economy pulls itself out of a deep trough.

Bernanke: Unemployment to top 10 percent

Mon, 07/27/2009 - 11:42 by surajdogra

New York, July 26: Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told an audience in Missouri Sunday unemployment will exceed 10 percent before receding in the second half of 2009.

In an appearance at a town hall in Kansas City, Mo., Bernanke said the economy is showing signs of improvement but he said recovery will not be rapid, CNN Money reported.

During the event -- "Bernanke on the Record" -- the Fed chairman took questions from audience members and from moderator Jim Lehrer, the host of "NewsHour"on PBS.

Bernanke said the recession, which he said is the worst since the Great Depression, could result in an economy that is stronger than it was before the downturn began.

Bernanke says keep an eye on recovery

Wed, 03/04/2009 - 07:26 by Rakhi Kaptiyal

Washington -- Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke called on U.S. lawmakers to view the federal budget with financial stability in mind.

Bernanke increased his rhetoric on the economy Tuesday, telling the Senate Budget Committee the past 18 months have been a period of "extraordinary turbulence."

Pointing to job losses and manufacturing declines, he said, "The recent near-term indicators show little sign of improvement."

However, he appeared to back the $787 billion economic stimulus bill, telling committee members the Congressional Budget Office estimated the package would raise the gross domestic product between 1 percent and "a little more than 3 percent" by the end of 2010.

Bernanke also said the federal budget included "new initiatives for energy, healthcare, education and tax policy," and said "Congress will have considerable work in evaluating how to proceed in each of these areas."

Bernanke backs fed charter for insurers

Fri, 02/27/2009 - 09:49 by Rakhi Kaptiyal

Washington -- U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the idea of a federal charter for insurance companies, particularly large ones, had merit.

"We did not have effective holding-company supervision in some cases where we have had problems," Bernanke told members of the House of Representatives Financial Services Committee Wednesday, Business Insurance reported.

Bernanke said, "An optional federal charter would be a direction worth giving serious consideration."

"One of the big problems is that if we wanted to close down a major institution, we don't have the legal authorities and the framework to do it," Bernanke told a Senate panel Tuesday in response to a question from Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., who asked the chairman to focus on the issue of systemic risk.

Bernanke says some markets have eased

Thu, 02/26/2009 - 00:18 by Shruti Sharma

Washington -- U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke repeated Wednesday his assertion the economy would start to rebuild in 2010.

Bernanke told members of the House Financial Services Committee some financial markets have improved in the past four months, particularly the short-term funding markets, which form the basis for lending to households and businesses.

Since November, he said, the conforming fixed mortgage rate has fallen nearly 1 percent.

"Strains in short-term funding markets have eased notably since the fall," he said, noting "London interbank offered rates … have decreased sharply."

Corporate risk spreads have also "declined somewhat from extraordinarily high levels, although these spreads remain elevated by historical standards," he said.

Bernanke Calls a Bottom

Wed, 02/25/2009 - 15:06 by Alyce Lomax