Brookings: Topics - Financial Services

Fixing the Financial Sector in the Wake of the Economic Crisis

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 10:37:21 GMT

Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-Conn) has introduced legislation to reform the financial sector in the wake of the recent economic crisis. Senator Dodd’s proposal calls for consolidating the four federal financial regulatory agencies into a single regulator. Fellow Douglas Elliott says regulation consolidation is definitely in order.

Expanding the Financial Services Frontier: Lessons From Mobile Phone Banking in Kenya

Fri, 16 Oct 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Access to financial services is crucial to economic growth and poverty reduction, yet a large proportion of households in developing countries lack access to financial services. Brookings expert Mwangi Kimenyi and Njuguna S. Ndung’u, Governor of the Central Bank of Kenya, discuss the Kenyan experience with mobile phone banking and how this technology can expand the financial services frontier.

How Will the Regulatory Reforms Affect Consumers?

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Dougals Elliott and others weigh in on the Obama administration's new consumer protection proposal on PBS's The Business Desk with Paul Soloman.

Insufficient Funds: Savings, Assets, Credit and Banking Among Low-Income Households

Mon, 04 May 2009 09:00:00 GMT

Event Information:

May 04, 2009, 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM

More low-income families now need assistance on how to find financial vehicles that will allow them to more effectively manage debt, savings and their financial lives. Brookings hosted a discussion on how recommendations from Insufficient Funds: Savings, Assets, Credit, and Banking among Low-Income Households—a new book edited by Rebecca M. Blank and Michael S. Barr—might be realized in this current economic environment.

Foreclosures and Stimulus: What’s At Stake for America’s Neighborhoods

Mon, 09 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT

The final House-Senate compromise on the economic recovery package offers no boost for HUD’s Neighborhood Stabilization Program, established last year to help state and local governments mitigate the impact of foreclosures. Alan Berube and Alan Mallach argue that additional funds for the program (part of the House proposal omitted in the final bill) would provide much-needed assistance to local communities.

Stabilizing Communities: A Federal Response to the Secondary Impacts of the Foreclosure Crisis

Tue, 03 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT

The wave of home mortgage foreclosures that began in 2006 continues to surge, greatly destabilizing neighborhoods, towns, and cities across the United States. However, the federal government has played a limited role to date in blunting its effects. This Blueprint policy brief argues for carefully-targeted federal policies to assist states and localities in mitigating the community-level impacts of foreclosure, and creating the conditions for ultimate housing market recovery.

The Not-So-Real-McCoy: Fake Alpha and the Need for Hedge Fund Transparency

Wed, 17 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Based on the 2008 working paper, "The Hedge Fund Game," Peyton Young and co-author Dean P. Foster show how surprisingly easy it is for unskilled managers to create “fake” alpha, mimicking the returns of their more skilled and scrupulous peers. The only way to protect the industry, the authors argue, is through greater transparency.

Sanctioning Iran: Current Impact, Future Prospects

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 12:30:00 GMT

Event Information:

December 16, 2008, 12:30 PM to 2:00 PM

The sixth session of the Iran Working Group was held on December 16, 2008, at Brookings. Several analysts shared their expertise on the current state of sanctions against Iran – in particular, on the current measures targeting certain Iranian banks – and on the prospects for the incoming U.S. administration to achieve multilateral consensus on a diplomatic strategy toward Tehran, particularly from key actors such as Russia and China.

Framing, Reference Points, and Preferences for Life Annuities

Fri, 31 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT

In this paper, Jeffrey R. Brown, Jeffrey R. Kling, Sendhil Mullainathan, Garth R. Wiens and Marian V. Wrobel test the relative effectiveness of their two framing contexts for life annuities when different reference points are introduced, testing for loss aversion in both investment and consumption frames.

Missing Markets: Fostering Market Based Solutions to Major Risks

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 09:30:00 GMT

Event Information:

June 05, 2008, 9:30 AM to 12:00 PM

Hurricanes, retirement, home-buying and tax-base erosion all pose financial risks. Yet markets to reduce these risks are elusive. The Hamilton Project at Brookings released papers at a discussion on how sound public policy can play a critical role in helping to foster new markets or expand existing markets in ways that could provide widely shared benefits.

Tackling the Mortgage Crisis: 10 Action Steps for State Government

Thu, 29 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT

The mortgage foreclosure crisis has become an issue of growing concern over the past two years, particularly in many older industrial communities. Alan Mallack proposes a set of 10 action steps that state leaders can take to help mitigate its impact on families and neighborhoods—and prevent a similar situation from occurring in the future.

How the Great Credit Squeeze Happened and How to Prevent Another

Fri, 16 May 2008 10:00:00 GMT

Event Information:

May 16, 2008, 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM

How could America's sophisticated financial system go so wrong and cause so much damage? Martin Baily, Douglas Elmendorf and Robert Litan answered that question in a new paper released at this public forum. The authors, following opening remarks by FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair, put forward a specific agenda of policy actions to reduce the chance that history repeats itself.

The Spring Meetings and the Global Economy

Fri, 02 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Missing from the recent IMF-World Bank ministerial meetings was an understanding that policy development needs to be an interactive process, one that includes financial officials and law makers. Colin Bradford advises the world's legislators must be brought into the conversation about global development in order for these discussions to evolve into successful action.

Pay-Day Lenders, Check Cashing Outlets and Other Alternative Financial Services

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT

A substantial number of low-income individuals make use of services within the alternative financial sector, particularly pay-day lenders and check cashing outlets. The high cost of these services has led many observers to seek policies that would reduce the use of informal financial services among lower income households. In this paper, Rebecca Blank reviews the reasons why individuals utilize AFS outlets and discusses the policy options that could affect these decisions.

Why Don't People Choose Annuities? A Framing Explanation

Mon, 31 Mar 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Jeffrey Kling, Jeffrey Brown, Sendhil Mullainathan and Marian Wrobel explore the idea that people's aversion to annuities is not a fully rational phenomenon. They suggest that a psychologically richer model of consumer behavior can explain under-annuitization.

Western Banks Must Take Their Own Medicine

Thu, 28 Feb 2008 00:00:00 GMT

In a recent op-ed, Erik Berglof discusses how European central banks might handle the current global financial crisis.

Financial Access without Expertise: Consumer Implications of the Credit Crisis

Fri, 22 Feb 2008 00:00:00 GMT

At a conference hosted by the Federal Bank of St.Louis and the RISE Foundation, Matt Fellowes discusses the lessons about consumers that can be drawn from the current housing crisis. He highlights the broad democratization of the financial services market that occurred in the 20th century, but finds that there was one, important exception: access to professional advice about financial service options.

Banking on Wealth: America’s New Retail Banking Infrastructure and Its Wealth-Building Potential

Tue, 22 Jan 2008 00:00:00 GMT

The $100 billion size of the high-cost non-bank basic financial services industry, including check cashers, payday lenders, and pawnshops, points to the high demand for basic financial services among low- and moderate-income customers. Alternative products sold by banks—located extensively in lower-income neighborhoods could meet those consumer needs, while also creating an opportunity for households to convert their current spending on high-cost services into savings and even wealth.

The Economic Power of Uncertainty: The Role of Consumer Credit Bureaus

Fri, 14 Dec 2007 00:00:00 GMT

With detailed financial information about over 200 million American consumers, credit reports substantially reduce the uncertainty numerous types of businesses have about consumers, including banks, insurance companies, and employers. The chief economic impact of that reduced uncertainty has been to support robust economic growth and prosperity. Yet, alongside those reductions in uncertainty, there are new uncertainties created too, which also carry important economic consequences. This speech assesses these market effects of credit reports and their economic significance for both businesses and consumers.

Q&A on Recent Financial Market Disruptions

Mon, 08 Oct 2007 16:54:20 GMT

Senior Fellow Douglas Elmendorf explains the roots of the crisis surrounding the rising sub-prime mortgage default rate and suggests that a greater financial literacy would be useful to homeowners and prospective homeowners.

Beyond Tax Preparation: Measuring the Market Impact of Wealth Building Initiatives

Tue, 02 Oct 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Hundreds of free tax preparation sites have opened-up in the past ten years that connect low-income families to the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and other income-supports.

Building Inclusive Financial Systems : A Framework for Financial Access

Mon, 01 Oct 2007 12:00:00 GMT

Building Inclusive Financial Systems offers an indispensable guide for governments and the private sector to increase access effectively and responsibly.

Making Markets an Asset for the Poor

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Matt Fellowes examines the higher prices lower-income workers pay for basic necessities--home loans, groceries, and financial services--and outlines a combination of initiatives that can bring down business costs.

The High Price of Easy Credit

Mon, 04 Jun 2007 00:00:00 GMT

The authors argue that the subprime mortgage problem is in part due to systemic gaps between what working families realistically need to know about borrowing options, and what they actually do know. The authors call for Congress to think through ways that working families can obtain trusted financial advice and information.

Borrowing to Get Ahead, and Behind: The Credit Boom and Bust in Lower-Income Markets

Fri, 11 May 2007 00:00:00 GMT

A new Brookings Institution, Metropolitan Policy Program study finds that the recent subprime implosion is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Americans borrowing more than they can manage. The study, written by Matt Fellowes, relies heavily on previously unavailable data, and finds that about one out of every three lower income borrowers falls behind on bill payments in a typical year, and over one out of every four now pays more than 40 percent of their income every year on debt payments.

The Sticker Shock of Sprawl: Housing/Transportation Tradeoffs in Metro Kansas City

Tue, 17 Apr 2007 00:00:00 GMT

If housing policy is to achieve its full potential, it cannot be crafted and executed in isolation, but rather, it must be shaped in concert with related policies like transportation, land use, economic development, financial services, and even education.

Making Markets an Asset for Lower Income, Working Families

Mon, 09 Apr 2007 00:00:00 GMT

In this testimony before the California Assembly Banking and Finance Committee, Matt Fellowes discusses the important opportunity to build wealth among California's lower income working families by expanding access to banking services.

The Geography of Consumer Credit Scores

Mon, 16 Oct 2006 00:00:00 GMT

In this presentation to the National Black Caucus of States Institute at the New York Federal Reserve, Matt Fellowes examines how the information in credit reports widely vary across the country.

Where is the Asset Building Opportunity? A Profile of Credit Utilization and Management in 50 Metros

Wed, 20 Sep 2006 00:00:00 GMT

In this presentation at the 2006 Assets Learning Conference sponsored by CFED and the Federal Reserve, Matt Fellowes examines credit utilization and management in fifty metros. He highlights key findings and discusses the implications and next steps

From Poverty, Opportunity: Putting the Market to Work for Lower Income Families

Sat, 01 Jul 2006 00:00:00 GMT

It’s Time to Let Banks (Even Big Ones) Compete

Thu, 15 Jun 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Robert E. Litan examines the artificial barriers that prevent banks and other financial service firms from competing.

Credit Scores, Reports, and Getting Ahead in America

Mon, 01 May 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Credit scores wield enormous influence in American consumer life, directly influencing, often without customer knowledge, prices for loans, insurance, employment, and housing.

Grounds for Competition: The Basic Financial Service Infrastructure in Low-Income Neighborhoods

Fri, 17 Mar 2006 00:00:00 GMT

In this presentation at the University of Delaware, Matt Fellowes showed how rising immigration and the 1996 welfare reform law spurred demand for high-cost financial products that hinder wealth building in low-income neighborhoods.

The Metropolitan Market for Alternative Short-Term Loans

Fri, 02 Dec 2005 00:00:00 GMT

In this presentation at the annual conference of the Consumer Federation of America, Matt Fellowes discussed the growing number of alternative short-term loan providers in metropolitan areas, particularly in suburban, low-poverty areas. Matt also discussed the numerous public policy and market implications of that growth.

Making a Better Life: Preparing for the Post-Katrina Personal Finance Crisis

Tue, 18 Oct 2005 00:00:00 GMT

Credit Counseling Opinion

Laboratories of Capitalism: How States Get the Market Right for Working Families

Thu, 23 Jun 2005 00:00:00 GMT

In this presentation at the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland 2005 Policy Summit, Matt Fellowes discussed how low-income families are faring in the ownership society, what are the different types of state innovations that benefit low-income working families, and what are the promises and perils of this state innovation.

The Price Is Wrong: Getting the Market Right for Working Families in Philadelphia

Fri, 01 Apr 2005 00:00:00 GMT

This report delves into the higher prices for everyday goods paid by working families, revealing what causes those costs, and recommending a number of policy approaches--such as reducing risks to business, giving consumers more marketplace information

Financial Access for Immigrants: Learning from Diverse Perspectives

Thu, 15 Apr 2004 00:00:00 GMT

Event Information:

April 15, 2004 at 12:00 AM

The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago hosted a conference that highlighted new research and best practices for overcoming barriers to immigrant financial market participation. Panels on traditional banking, housing and homeownership, entrepreneurship, small business lending, and remittances featured speakers from policy makers, researchers, and representatives of financial institutions, government agencies, immigrant advocacy and community development organizations.

North Carolina’s Anti-Predatory Lending Law: Still A Problem Despite New Study

Mon, 15 Sep 2003 00:00:00 GMT

Robert E. Litan reviews a study of North Carolina’s anti-predatory lending law.

Relationships in Financial Services: Are Anti-Tying Restrictions Out of Date?

Sat, 15 Mar 2003 00:00:00 GMT

Robert E. Litan advocates that policy makers allow the marketplace to determine what combinations of financial services are offered to corporate customers who do not need to be protected by artificial rules that may once have been useful but certainly are no longer.

The Price of Paying Taxes: How Tax Preparation and Refund Loan Fees Erode the Benefits of the EITC

Wed, 01 May 2002 00:00:00 GMT

This new report details, for the first time, how the use of tax preparation services and "fast cash" refund loans is concentrated among working poor families and neighborhoods

Homeownership That's Too Important to Risk

Mon, 20 Aug 2001 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by Robert E. Litan, Director, Economic Studies, The Brookings Institution, in The New York Times, August 20, 2001

Privacy Issues in the Financial Services Industry

Thu, 15 Jul 1999 00:00:00 GMT

In testimony before the Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit, U.S. House Committee on Banking and Financial Services, Robert Litan applauds the inclusion of privacy protections in H.R. 10.

Brookings-Wharton Papers on Financial Services: 1998

Mon, 06 Jul 1998 00:00:00 GMT

The papers in this inaugural volume, as well as brief comments on the papers, are written by some of the leading financial experts from the corporate, government, and academic communities in the United States.