NEW YORK - The Federal Reserve is “well suited” to supervise “systemically important financial institutions that may not already be subject to the Bank Holding Company Act,” Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben S. Bernanke told the House Financial
Services Committee today.
Noting the Fed is “already the consolidated supervisor of some of the largest and most complex institutions in the world,” the chairman said, according to prepared text released by the Fed, the Board has “the expertise … in supervising large, diversified, and interconnected banking organizations” and “broad knowledge of the financial markets in which these organizations operate.”
Those credentials make “the Federal Reserve well suited to serve as the consolidated supervisor for those systemically important financial institutions that may not already be subject to the Bank Holding Company Act,” he said. “In addition, our involvement in supervision is critical for ensuring that we have the necessary expertise, information, and authorities to carry out our essential functions as a central bank of promoting financial stability and making effective monetary policy.”
