The leaders of the biggest U.S. banks are likely to be summoned to Washington to face questions from a congressional panel that oversees Wall Street, an early sign that the financial industry will endure tougher scrutiny under a Democratic-controlled House.
The chief executives of Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Wells Fargo & Co., JPMorgan Chase & Co., Citigroup Inc., Morgan Stanley and Bank of America Corp. could be asked to testify before the House Financial Services Committee, according to people familiar with the discussions.
The panel is considering holding a hearing as soon as March. But plans might change as Representative Maxine Waters, the California Democrat who heads the panel, hasn’t officially requested that the bank CEOs appear before the committee, said the people who asked not to be named because no hearing has been scheduled. Still, at least two banks have been contacted by Waters’s office about a potential hearing, according to the people.
Spokesmen for JPMorgan, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, Wells Fargo and Morgan Stanley declined to comment. Spokesmen for Bank of America and Waters did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Waters has promised aggressive oversight of Wall Street megabanks and their regulators, as agency heads appointed by President Trump have sought to ease rules put in place after the 2008 financial crisis.
“The committee will be paying close attention to whether financial regulators try to weaken these important reforms, and keeping an eye on big banks and their activities, including by holding many hearings,” Waters said in a Jan. 16 speech.
The panel has also attracted progressive Democrats who have refused to accept political contributions from banks and other corporations, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
