Community Banks take on Wall Street "Uncle Sam meets Mr. Market!" - Barclays PLC $450 million settlement for Market Manipulation +

Barclays PLC and its subsidiaries will pay $450 million to settle with US and UK authorities over accusations the bank attempted to manipulate key interest rates to benefit derivatives trading positions. This is just the first settlement, and a global investigation involving many of the world's biggest banks is on-going . Are you sick of this? Do you want to put your money in a bank that simply uses your deposits to make loans to finance the economy, not to finance speculation? Well we'll talk to CEO of EagleBank Ron Paul, about community banks as an alternative.
 

Also, is the traditional small bank business model being destroyed by ZIRP? What would be the impact of NIRP, a negative interest rate policy? The ECB is reportedly contemplating it; Mario Draghi is thinking of reducing the bank's deposit rate to zero or even lower. We'll talk about it.

US cities and states are strapped for cash, and currently there is a $3 trillion debt according to the Federal Reserve. Stockton, a city in California, has become the latest city to crumble under the weight. It is the nation's largest city to seek bankruptcy protection. Is there an alternative model of doing business for cities, to avoid these tragedies? We'll talk about the outsourcing of city hall. 

Barclays has been ordered to pay hundreds of millions of dollars to settle charges of attempting to manipulate two global benchmark interest rates, the LIBOR and Euribor. Barclays, according to Reuters, has admitted to trying to make Libor look artificially low, to avoid signaling the bank's distress during the financial crisis. According to the CFTC, Barclays traders and employeees also attempted to manipulate the interest rates and made false reports to benefit the banks derivatives trading positions, maximize profits and minimize losses. This conduct occurred regularly and was pervasive. And they included Barclays traders asking other banks to assist in the manipulation of interest rates. Libor underpins trillions of dollars in derivative contracts and is a crucial peg for corporate and personal borrowing rates worldwide. So if this is another example of feeling taken advantage of by these big banks, what can you do? Ronald D. Paul, Chairman and CEO of EagleBank talks to us about banking alternatives.

Meanwhile, state and local governments in the United States are a reported $3 trillion in debt. Stockton is on track to be the nation's largest city to seek protection under the U.S. bankruptcy code. Thirteen cities, counties, and other government entities filed for bankruptcy last year-- the highest annual level in nearly two decades. Is there an alternative model of doing business for cities to save money, avoid massive debt and the promises of generous benefits and pensions made to employees that in the end local governments can't pay? 

We talk to Eva Galambos, Mayor of Sandy Springs, Georgia, where City Hall has seven employees on the public payroll. The rest are private employees who work for private companies through contracts to do all local government's functions.


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