On April 28, both the Federal Reserve and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation issued self-assessments of their regulatory oversight leading up to the closings of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank. At the time of their failures, Silicon Valley Bank…
The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame announced the induction of Rage Against the Machine, a band known as much for its politics as its music, on Wednesday. The group affirmed that description in its statement embracing its induction. It…
Perfect storms occur in batches. It’s never a single event, a single wave. Bank executives, like ship captains, earn their keep during times of upheaval. The good ones anticipate events, examine cause and effect, assess risk, and chart the best…
I have heard some people say that the Federal Reserve has a credibility problem. The agency missed the biggest inflation spike since the 1980s, was slow to start rolling back pandemic policies, and failed to spot the risks that some…
It is a warning to conservatives everywhere: The rise of woke progressivism, amped by social media, threatens the future of democracy. The Israeli Left now is acting to circumvent free elections by trying to take down Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu’s popularly…
Moral hazard occurs when an agreement that people make to act in concert for their mutual benefit results in an incentive for one of them to act immorally. The classic case is insurance. When an insurance company contracts with a…
Power Failure: The Rise and Fall of an American Icon By William D. Cohan (Portfolio, 816 pages, $40) In Power Failure: The Rise and Fall of An American Icon, William D. Cohan masterfully chronicles the creation, ascent, and destruction of…
Two large regional banks failed within a period of only two days, Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) on March 10, and Signature Bank on March 12. Both banks had a combined aggregate asset size of $319 billion as of Dec. 31,…
What do Willie Sutton and Democrats have in common? One can rob a bank by wearing the Hamburglar’s mask, handing over Virgil Starkwell’s note, and waving around Evelle Snoats’s firearm. Alternatively, one can simply join the bank’s board and direct…