Remarks by
Jelena McWilliams
Chairman
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
“Preparing for Cross-border Resolution Together”
at the
Single Resolution Board Conference
Brussels, Belgium
(delivered via video)
October 15, 2018
Jelena McWilliams
Chairman
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
“Preparing for Cross-border Resolution Together”
at the
Single Resolution Board Conference
Brussels, Belgium
(delivered via video)
October 15, 2018
Introduction
Thank you for the opportunity to address you today as part of the SRB’s annual resolution
conference.
I apologize that I am unable to be with you in person, but I’m grateful for the opportunity to talk
about our progress on bank resolvability.
The mission of the FDIC, including our work with the SRB on cross-border resolution, resonates
profoundly with me.
Like the newest SRB Board member Bostjan Jazbec, I was born in the former Yugoslavia. I
lived through the start of the civil war that eventually broke that country apart. After the collapse
of its financial system, my parents’ meager savings disappeared overnight when a local bank
closed its doors. Yugoslavia had no deposit insurance and my then 68-year-old father had to
return to work as a day laborer, making the equivalent of $5 a day for a 70-hour work week.
Because of my family’s experience, deposit insurance and the mission of the FDIC are real to
me. I’ve seen firsthand how vulnerabilities in the financial system can impact real people and
their lives. The experience has stayed with me to this day.
Since I was sworn in as the FDIC’s chairman in June, I have developed an even greater
appreciation for the agency and its history as a resolution authority.
The FDIC has developed its approach to bank resolution over decades, adapting our resolution
strategy in response to each crisis we have faced since 1933.
Like the SRB, I am bringing a fresh perspective to the challenge of cross-border bank resolution,
and I welcome this opportunity to recap our efforts in the United States before discussing some
of the issues we will face together in the years ahead.
Resolution Preparedness in the United States
Let me begin by highlighting how we approach resolution preparedness. In the United States,
the largest bank holding companies are required by law to submit resolution plans (also known
as “living wills”) in a process overseen by the FDIC and the Federal Reserve Board. Through
this work, the largest, internationally-active domestic banks, commonly referred to as U.S. G-
SIBs, have implemented significant structural and operational improvements that have enhanced
their resolvability.
U.S. agencies also have worked to develop strategies that would facilitate the resolution of
failing financial institutions in an orderly fashion. A primary goal is for losses to be absorbed by
the shareholders and unsecured creditors of the holding company, thus avoiding the taxpayer
bailouts and instability we faced in the most recent financial crisis.
Thank you for the opportunity to address you today as part of the SRB’s annual resolution
conference.
I apologize that I am unable to be with you in person, but I’m grateful for the opportunity to talk
about our progress on bank resolvability.
The mission of the FDIC, including our work with the SRB on cross-border resolution, resonates
profoundly with me.
Like the newest SRB Board member Bostjan Jazbec, I was born in the former Yugoslavia. I
lived through the start of the civil war that eventually broke that country apart. After the collapse
of its financial system, my parents’ meager savings disappeared overnight when a local bank
closed its doors. Yugoslavia had no deposit insurance and my then 68-year-old father had to
return to work as a day laborer, making the equivalent of $5 a day for a 70-hour work week.
Because of my family’s experience, deposit insurance and the mission of the FDIC are real to
me. I’ve seen firsthand how vulnerabilities in the financial system can impact real people and
their lives. The experience has stayed with me to this day.
Since I was sworn in as the FDIC’s chairman in June, I have developed an even greater
appreciation for the agency and its history as a resolution authority.
The FDIC has developed its approach to bank resolution over decades, adapting our resolution
strategy in response to each crisis we have faced since 1933.
Like the SRB, I am bringing a fresh perspective to the challenge of cross-border bank resolution,
and I welcome this opportunity to recap our efforts in the United States before discussing some
of the issues we will face together in the years ahead.
Resolution Preparedness in the United States
Let me begin by highlighting how we approach resolution preparedness. In the United States,
the largest bank holding companies are required by law to submit resolution plans (also known
as “living wills”) in a process overseen by the FDIC and the Federal Reserve Board. Through
this work, the largest, internationally-active domestic banks, commonly referred to as U.S. G-
SIBs, have implemented significant structural and operational improvements that have enhanced
their resolvability.
U.S. agencies also have worked to develop strategies that would facilitate the resolution of
failing financial institutions in an orderly fashion. A primary goal is for losses to be absorbed by
the shareholders and unsecured creditors of the holding company, thus avoiding the taxpayer
bailouts and instability we faced in the most recent financial crisis.