Good news for banks: Attorney General Eric Holder’s departure is the beginning of the end of the Justice Department’s push to hold big banks accountable for their pre-crisis conduct, according to an article in The Wall Street Journal:
While several big banks remain in the Justice Department’s crosshairs for their sale of flawed mortgage securities ahead of the 2008 financial crisis, the settlements are expected to be much smaller than the record sums extracted from Bank of America, J.P. Morgan Chase and Citigroup.
But his departure does not necessarily guarantee that things will be easier for banks.
Some analysts say Holder’s departure should leave Wall Street on edge, noting that a new boss may be more zealous than the old boss.
“There is real risk that his successor could be even more aggressive, which would be a negative for the banks and for housing,” Jaret Seiberg, a Washington analyst with Guggenheim Securities.
