Billionaire Bill Ackman has warned that “We are running out of time” to fix the problem that led to the collapses of regional banks. “How many more unnecessary bank failures do we need to watch before the FDIC, U.S. Treasury, and our government wake up?” he stressed, adding that “We need a systemwide deposit guarantee regime now.”
Ackman Calls for Urgent Action as Time Runs Out to Prevent More Bank Failures
Billionaire Bill Ackman, CEO and portfolio manager of Pershing Square Capital Management, has warned that time is running out for the U.S. government to fix the banking system. He tweeted Wednesday:
The regional banking system is at risk … The rapid rise in rates impaired assets and drained deposits.
Ackman explained that the “failure” of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) “to update and expand its insurance regime has hammered more nails in the coffin.” He stressed that First Republic Bank “would not have failed if the FDIC temporarily guaranteed deposits while a new guarantee regime were created. Instead, we watch the dominoes fall at great systemic and economic cost.” First Republic Bank was seized by regulators earlier this week and most of its assets were sold to JPMorgan Chase.
The billionaire added that globally systemic banks (G-SIBs) “have an unfair competitive advantage as too big to fail means only their uninsured depositors can sleep soundly. Until the playing field is leveled, the regional banks are at grave risk.”
Ackman continued: “Confidence in a financial institution is built over decades and destroyed in days. As each domino falls, the next weakest bank begins to wobble. Until investors are rewarded for betting on a wobbling bank, there will be no bid, and the best sale is the last price.” He stressed:
We are running out of time to fix this problem.
“How many more unnecessary bank failures do we need to watch before the FDIC, U.S. Treasury, and our government wake up? We need a systemwide deposit guarantee regime now,” he concluded.
Do you agree with Bill Ackman that time is running out for the U.S. to fix its banking system? Let us know in the comments section below.
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