Congress should identify banks or other financial institutions that have become so large their failure poses a systemic risk and should put them under federal supervision, according to the Independent Community Bankers of America.
"Excessive concentration has led to systemic risk and the banking crisis that we now face," C.R. Cloutier, president of MidSouth Bank in Louisiana, told the U.S. House of Representatives antitrust subcommittee on Tuesday.
Albert Foer, head of the independent American Antitrust Institute, said antitrust challenges in the courts were unlikely to succeed and urged the creation of a new position in the Justice Department -- deputy assistant attorney general for emergency restructuring -- to argue for antitrust concerns while crucial decisions were being made.
"Congress should assure that a loud competition voice is heard," said Foer, who argued the government should stop mergers that could create "an unreasonable systemic risk."
