Rebounding banks

The biggest US banks have collectively reported their highest quarterly profits since before the financial crisis, bucking industry concerns that new rules aimed at curbing Wall Street’s excesses would crimp its ability to generate earnings.

Much of the higher profits in the second quarter came from earnings at the biggest of the big banks – Citi, JPMorgan and Wells Fargo. Some politicians and regulators have criticised US policy for inadvertently strengthening larger financial institutions and intensifying the risk of these banks becoming “Too Big to Fail.”