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If anyone is interested in learning more about why no one goes to jail, and banks dont even have to admit they did anything wrong, etc., I recommend you go pick

If anyone is interested in learning more about why no one goes to jail, and banks dont even have to admit they did anything wrong, etc., I recommend you go pick up a copy of Matt Taibbi's new book "The Divide" He goes into great deal regarding why the most egregious white collar crimes such as HSBC laundering money for the Mexican cartels / terrorist organizations ended with a simple 1.9 billion dollar fine (http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/12/11/us-hsbc-probe-idUSBRE8BA05M20121211 http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/12/11/us-hsbc-probe-idUS...), no one going to jail, and the bank not even having to admit they did anything wrong. There are many reasons why (after all, he wrote a whole book about it) but to list a few 1. The Justice Department does not want to risk losing a case (for political reasons) 2.The unit in charge of investigating this type of crime within the justice department is staffed with defense lawyers who dont think out of the box (thanks to obama) 3.the banks committing these crimes are large, multinational institutions so there are complexities around the fact of who committed the crimes, what jurisdiction they were committed in, etc. the most disturbing chapter in the book was a about a hedge funds harassing (literally harassing) a Canadian insurance firm Fairfax financial. The judge ended up throwing out that case because it took place in NJ but the crimes took place in NYC: http://www.swtriallaw.com/press-releases/new-jersey-court-clears-exis-capital-in-fairfax-financial-hedge-fund-lawsuit/ http://www.swtriallaw.com/press-releases/new-jersey-court-cl... 4.the banks have a lot of money to spend on lawyers 5.the same lawyers that are defending the banks create the laws and regulations they live by (Eric Holder and a few others) 6.this memo: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/04/eric-holder-1999-memo_n_3384980.html http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/04/eric-holder-1999-me... - that is, anything that might hurt innocent bystanders—when deciding whether to bring a case against a corporation. "Prosecutors may take into account the possibly substantial consequences to a corporation's officers, directors, employees, and shareholders," 7. That banks argue that a prosecution could be economically disruptive because they are "too big to fail" so basically if you hurt them, you are hurting everyone else also. It is really a fascinating, and in some ways depressing, read. Honestly, this is nothing compared to the banks getting caught fixing the LIBOR rate a few years back, and no one went to jail for that anyways.

penguindev 12y ago
> this is nothing compared to the banks getting caught fixing the LIBOR rate a few years back It's really nothing compared to the fact that banks can print trillions of dollars of credit out of thin air - and not go to jail for counterfeiting. Heck, counterfeiting used to be a capital offense in this country. So the lesson is always: rules don't apply to rich people.
- misiti3780 12y ago
  agreed - but a small point - the banks printing money are really basically government entities (the federal reserve, ECB, etc). the banks the article + book are talking about are private entities committing serious fraud and not getting being prosecuted for it.
  - penguindev 12y ago
    I disagree about the federal reserve being a government entity. It's owned by banks - a "self regulating" private cartel by charter. Even congress can't "audit" the fed. The fed controls the government much more than vice versa. Sure they will spin some line like 'profits' from the fed go to the government (profits above which are distributed to the private bank shareholders, of course!) but that's like saying I get reward points for every dollar I charge on a credit card. If you really think banks are "giving up" a lot of profits, you might want to check the total % of profits that go to the financial sector in the US economy. What are "profits" anyway when you can just print money - what is profit measured by? Furthermore, even your 'small banks' that "loan" money under fractional reserve rules are, if you squint, awfully close to counterfeiting as that can raise the money supply 9 fold. So I recommend you keep digging and follow the money.
    - shit_parade 12y ago
      Banks are complicated shell structures for sure, just look into BIS, a 'central bank' for central banks. However the federal chair is appointed by the white house.

penguindev 12y ago

> this is nothing compared to the banks getting caught fixing the LIBOR rate a few years back It's really nothing compared to the fact that banks can print trillions of dollars of credit out of thin air - and not go to jail for counterfeiting. Heck, counterfeiting used to be a capital offense in this country. So the lesson is always: rules don't apply to rich people.

misiti3780 12y ago
agreed - but a small point - the banks printing money are really basically government entities (the federal reserve, ECB, etc). the banks the article + book are talking about are private entities committing serious fraud and not getting being prosecuted for it.
- penguindev 12y ago
  I disagree about the federal reserve being a government entity. It's owned by banks - a "self regulating" private cartel by charter. Even congress can't "audit" the fed. The fed controls the government much more than vice versa. Sure they will spin some line like 'profits' from the fed go to the government (profits above which are distributed to the private bank shareholders, of course!) but that's like saying I get reward points for every dollar I charge on a credit card. If you really think banks are "giving up" a lot of profits, you might want to check the total % of profits that go to the financial sector in the US economy. What are "profits" anyway when you can just print money - what is profit measured by? Furthermore, even your 'small banks' that "loan" money under fractional reserve rules are, if you squint, awfully close to counterfeiting as that can raise the money supply 9 fold. So I recommend you keep digging and follow the money.
  - shit_parade 12y ago
    Banks are complicated shell structures for sure, just look into BIS, a 'central bank' for central banks. However the federal chair is appointed by the white house.