Fischer Says Bankers Should Be Punished for Financial Crimes

Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer said bankers who have engaged in wrongdoing should be punished, and he chided the industry for pushing back against financial regulations adopted to prevent another conflagration.

“Individuals should be punished for any misconduct they personally engaged in,” Fischer said in a speech to bankers Monday in Toronto. While massive fines are being imposed on banks, “one does not see the individuals who were responsible for some of the worst aspects of bank behavior, for example in the Libor and foreign-exchange scandals, being punished severely.”