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The Papers of Eugene Meyer(mss52019)
118_05_001-
Subject File, Federal Reserve Board, Glass Bill, Senate Hearings, 1-2/1931
GLASS =SUTTEE HEARINGS.
January 19, 1931.
Abolish office of Comptroller and transfer to Federal
Reserve Board.
Modification of Federal Reserve Act and National Bank Act
on question of examination.
Remedies:
Forfeiture of Charter,
Special list for examination.
Removal of officials an a power of remedial character.
Causes of Bank (failures).
Saw Pole. - Trend to larger banks.
Shrinkage in securities owned.
Security loans a factor in bank failures?
Glass question? -
Are present reserves adequate?
Demand and time deposits - Manipulation for.
Purpose of reducing reserve requirements.
Glass question -
Should national banks be allowed to
take time deposits?
Glass - Have we not amended our national banking laws
to meet State weak banking laws in a spirit of
competition.
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ao,
1931.
G. L. Harrison.
Differentiation:
1. - Violation of Law
2. - Sound principles within the law.
What is gro7th of time
V3.
demand since Federal Reserve
System? (Look this up)
Savings - Stimulated by law reserves, but also by high
rates.
January 20, 1931.
Would not segregation of security for savings imply
division and segre,c7ation of capital?
Question of law - Can Federal Reserve Board impose restrictions on percentage of real estate for State banks.
Glass says - Par. 3, Section 9, authorizes Federal Reserve
Board to restrict and regulate.
January 20, 1931.
G. L. Harrison and others too disposed to accept status
quo because it is troublesome to change.
-2-
Jan. 20, 1931 -
Glass thinks examinations should not be made of affiliates
unless to the extent that law requires.
Cause of bank failures.
IV.
What is percentage of member to non-member bank failure.
Canadian banking system - Glass asks G. L. Harrison - Is it
Sound?
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January 22, 1931.
Glass - 15 day loan for purpose of tiding bank over
emergency.
Has it been used extensively for stock marker purposes?
G. L. Harrison disagrees.
January 26, 1931.
A. H. Wiggin.
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Does not favor prohibition in Glass Bill.
borrowing from Federal reserve bank
Against
by large country bank. which
has collateral security loans - on ground that legitimate business
would be injured.
Chase Bank cannot tell why a correspondent bank wants
money.
A. H. Wiggin favors a higher rate on loans by Federal
reserve banks on bonds.
A. H. Wiggin - Clearing House certificates should be
made eligible.
Cities of not less than 500,000 people with not less
than ten member banks in Clearing House.
A. H. W. says - Control of loans for others is not
practicable.
Security loans a cause of bank failures?
No freeze of
loans of Stock Exchange securities.
A. H. W. - Makes distinction between unmarketable
securities.
Invest. - Trend of Security Loans.
security loans should be upward.
W. - Against short sales.
Restrictions on market.
W. says normal
-2-
Jan. 26, 1931.
Security affiliates - Wiggin favors them.
On Security affiliates - States State institutions can
compete directly under law.
Comptroller examines Chase Security Corporation.
Balance sheet and statement of income of Sec. Co.
A. H. W. favors should have supervisory power over
tank affiliates.
Willis asks - Should portfolio be published with statements
of Security Co. -
Limit on loans to Security Co.?
Amer. Ex. - 18 M M Capital
"
_Hanover Tr. 9 M M
Chase Sec. - 108 M M Capital, Surplus and Res.
Wiggin thinks reserve on time deposits Should be the same
as demand deposits.
Willis speaks of rates in Federal Reserve Districts at
71resent uniform. Actually 2, 2, 3 and 3.
Mr. Platt of Marine Midland Trust.
Norbeck - Asks cause of numerous bank failures in last
ten years.
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January 29, 1931.
Edge Act. - Trafford of First National.
Willis - Difference between English and American acceptance
business.
Willis - Is domestic acceptance business sound or unsound?
Willis - Is accept. against commodity security sound or
unsound?
Willis - What can be done to put acceptance business on
its feet?
Has there been a great incresse in acceptance against
commodity in warehouse abroad, especially in Germany?
Trafford of First National of Boston advises complete
examination of Security affiliates.
Examinations of Edge Act Corporation by FederalReserve
Board.
Trafford says Security affil. necessary to maintain National
System against State Bank System.
Fred W. - Is it safer to lend on security collateral direct
to individuals or to brokers?
First National - Now lending three times as much direct as
to brokers.
Instructions by Comptroller under McFadden Act as to buying
of bonds.
Look up McFadden Law - Security Section.
January 29, 1931.
-2-
Trafford:- I wouldn't do anything to hurt the National Banks
in their ability to compete with State Banks.
Trafford: - Serious thing is dropping out of National System.
Trafford: - Says hardly a National Bank left
in Maine.
Trafford asks: - Is there any way to reach State bank reserves.
Question by F. W. - Have grozen investments been responsible
for bank failures?
T: - Sees no need of branch banking in New England.
H. P. W. -
Would country wide branch banking be good?
Trafford says: -
Great distinction to be made between time
and savings deposits.
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January 30, 1931.
Geo. Davison:
1.
Can't make good banking by legislation.
2.
Too liberal Chartering of banks.
3.
Rivalry between State and National System.
4.
Two banks where can be prosperous.
5.
Larger centers brought nearer by good roads.
G:
How by legislation to adjust competition between
State and National?
G. W. D.
- Ans.:
Only by more cooperation.
G; - No way to correct bad banking by legislation?
D: - Great difficulty to correct abuses, he finds.
G: - Comptroller of Currency suggests suspension or
removal of bank official
D: - Danger to O.K. would result from removal.
D: - No good bank has failed in 1930.
G: - Haven't good banks failed because of bad management?
G: - Did Federal Reserve System have anything to do with
trouble in 1929.
D: - Possibly many reasons.
Capital gains tax.
D: - Easy money in 1927 may have been carried on too long.
Gall loans are as good a secondary reserve as a bank can
have.
G: - Why did we forbid securities as eligible?
D: - To make preferential rates for commercial business.
January 30, 1931.
-2-
G: - Abuse in loans for others.
G: - Do you think it wise to have open market operations
submerge rediscount provisions?
D: - Both are necessary.
G: - Origin of open market never was intended to enable
control of money rates.
Discount rate was supposed to react to
reserves and to help business.
Says all money gets into one stream.
G: - Either Federal Reserve controls money market or money
market controls bank.
G: - Only thing we have done, -seems to he to prevent
currency famine.
G: -It seems we're back to a bank secured currency.
D: - Investment forms an important part of our banking
system.
G: - Yes, C. K., but not intended to form an important
Dart of Federal R. B. System.
G: - Many hundreds of millions issued under Vreeland
Aldrich Act in 1914.
Emergency Currency.
D: - Am not opposed to Brancn Banking within narrow limits,
but is opposed to group and chain banking in any form.
Is opposed to
state wide branch banking.
G:
Isn't unit system carried to an undesirable extreme?
January 30, 1931.
-3-
D: - Shouldn't have banks that can be supported?
D: - Would like to have uniform banking law.
D: - The beginning of security affiliates was inability
to compete under national bank law with State institutions.
Willis: - Earmarking purposes of loans.
Invest. - % of Commercial agricultural paper.
W: - Were Trust Companies more engaged more deeply in
Security loans.
D: - Our loans on security loans were lower in 1929.
G: - Reserve requirements on savings or thrift accounts.
D: - No interest to pay on less than 1,000 deposits would
solve savings account problem.
G: - How about limiting deposits of banks with other banks.
Towns. asks how to define limits of branch banking. County lines - trade areas?
D says trade areas too wide.
G says never any objection to branch banking from borrowers always from Banks.
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February 2, 1931.
Chas. E. Mitchell.
Glass: - Did F. R. Notes exchangeability for gold result in
maladjustment of world's gold supply?
M: - Thinks it not a factor.
M: - Thinks it's useless.
M: - We had a great inflation; 1st. Commodities, which was corrected;
2nd. Real Estate
3rd. Securities.
- What comment on loans for others?
Loans for others a great contrite factor.
Loans for account
of others - outside of F. R. System.
G: -
What measures did you advocate and what do you think Should
have been done?
M: - Loans for others had to really be considered as a part of
the total volume of credit.
G: - Did not the Act contemplate a differentiation betreen
investments and speculation?
M: - Vb.
M:
Oall loans, liquid and no loss of a dollar.
safe if we have about 100 M M.
We only feel
Call loans.
G: - What relation has reserve of a F. R. B. to its willingness
to discount for member banks.
Relation of Res. to attitude of ranks?
M: - Ratio so large as to be unimportant.
-2_
February 2, 1931.
C. E. Mitchell.
Glass: - Do you think 15 day borrow - has been abused?
M: - No. City Bank never borrowed on Governments in excess
of eliaible paner on hand in bank.
G: - We emphasized importance of F. R. Agent in the Act and
no,v the man is one who is not even mentioned in tbe Act.
G: - Do yoa think wise to put a limitation of 15 day loans of M: - Look at my chart.
G: - For agencies authorized to be established by ban': with
approval of F. R. B.
Loss taking.
Should trading in shares of bank be forbidden by affiliate.
M: - No way to force banks into F. R. System.
way to make provision for - say 25 m. liquidity.
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February 3, 1931.
H. M. Robinson.
Anything that will help to reduce competition between
State and National systems.
February 16, 1931.
Melvin Traylor.
77ould like to see uniform State banking laws.
Give State banks Dower for branches within a county with view to
increase to State-wide.
Prohitit bank owned outside a state, or branch of
bank owned or dominated outside of a State.
G. asks what is difference between correspondent
banking and branch banking?
February 16, 1931.
Stephenson - Pres. A. B. A.
HPrd roads take farmer into larger towns.
Member of Comm. of National Association of Mutual
Savings Bank willing to buy F.R.B. stock based upon surplus.
want to borrow on bonds.
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February 17, 1931.
Traylor.
Commercial Banking
Affiliates
Glass:
Ibnt is your view of use of rediscount rate to
control speculation?
Initiation of discount rate. Bank or Board has veto power
on rate.
catuitea ,W,c,t5 „fella
February 19, 1931.
Bean.
Discount Corporation
Bills and Acceptances.
End January. Banks carrying 130 MM of own acceptances.
433 M. M. Acce7)tances of other banks.
Export acceptances declinine in a normal wa7.
Low point generally- June, July.
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