Curry on condition of federal banking system

In a remarks at the Harvard Kennedy School, Comptroller Curry discussed how the financial system has progressed since the Great Recession, its present strengths, and the need to remain vigilant against risks. Curry stated, “I want to conclude by noting that lessons from 2008 were not really new lessons. Rather, the crisis reminded us of basic principles that have been around since the very first Comptroller of the Currency, Hugh McCulloch, provided sage advice to bankers in 1863. His advice included:

• Let no loans be made that are not secured beyond a reasonable contingency.
• Distribute your loans rather than concentrate them in a few hands.
• Treat your customers liberally, bearing in mind a bank prospers as its customers prosper.
• The capital of a bank should be a reality, not a fiction.”