Federal Reserve press conference, 2016-12-14 — Chair Janet Yellen

Question (John Heltman, American Banker): John Heltman of American Banker. You said that much progress has been made since the crisis in making the banks more secure, more safe, higher liquidity, capital levels, et cetera. Does that feeling extend to the culture of the banks, the way that they run, the way that they operate in their approach towards—towards business? Do you think that more needs to be done there? Do you expect that if there has been improvement, that it will continue to be—that culture will continue to improve in the next Administration and the next Congress?
Answer: Well, there have been many ways in which there have been compliance failures at large organizations, and you’ve seen a series of enforcement actions by the banking regulators over a range of practices that suggests some breakdown of compliance or culture, whether it involves violations of sanctions or foreign exchange or LIBOR or other matters. So this is something that we’ve discussed and emphasized, the importance of a culture of compliance. And the Board will be undertaking review. We’ve already begun this year, broadly, of compliance and management of compliance risk in the largest corporations. So I think this is something that’s important. And the failings that we have seen in a number of institutions suggest there is certainly room for improvement.