Bank of America CEO says the market "will punish people if we don't have an independent Fed"

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: CBS News

Updated on: December 28, 2025 / 11:08 AM EST


Bank of America Chairman and CEO Brian Moynihan said last week that, as President Trump searches for a new chair of the Federal Reserve, maintaining the banking system's independence is paramount. The market "will punish people if we don't have an independent Fed," Moynihan said in a segment for "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" that was recorded on Dec. 17 and aired Sunday. "And everybody knows that."

The Federal Reserve is the nation's central bank and sets the interest rates. At the agency's December meeting, it cut interest rates for the third consecutive time, reducing the federal funds rate — the rate at which banks charge each other for short-term loans — to between 3.5% and 3.75%.

Interest rates had dropped to nearly zero during the COVID-19 pandemic, but steadily began rising starting in 2022 to curb inflation. The December rate cut put the benchmark interest rates at their lowest level since Nov. 2022.

Throughout this year, Mr. Trump has repeatedly expressed his displeasure with Jerome Powell, the current Federal Reserve chairman, whose term is set to expire in May 2026. Although the Fed chair is nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate, it is an independent agency and there is no legal precedent for Mr. Trump to fire the chair for anything but "for cause." The Supreme Court found in 1935 that Congress is allowed to limit the grounds on which the president can fire members of independent federal boards.

Read more: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/bank-of-america-ceo-brian-moynihan-independent-fed-jerome-powell/

[bucolic_frolic]

1. Take that as a warning of what's ahead

[Cheezoholic]

2. And make no mistake. Est. 40-50% of the est. 65 trillion with a T, dollar market is in retirement funds i.e. 401k's

The top 1% are eyeballing the greatest pension theft in the history of the known universe IMO. Its an ever growing amount with the baby boomers reaching peak retirement investment over the last 20 years. Controlling the Fed will be the last step in stealing nearly everyones money with the top 1% getting near interest free loans to wreck the markets for everyone else. Is it smart business? No, but who cares if you and yours are protected for the next 5 generations. It's coming I truly believe.

[FredGarvin]

3. Low interest rates

Made living in the US unaffordable

[BumRushDaShow]

4. Because the credit card companies

were allowed to domicile in states that had the highest interest rate CAPs, so "low interest rates" were meaningless for the average person other than those who could afford to buy a home and/or car.

[FredGarvin]

5. The Fed opened up the discount window for banks at massively discounted rates

Sometimes at near zero rates.

[BumRushDaShow]

8. And those banks (that run the credit cards)

benefit massively when that discount DOESN'T get passed down to the consumer except perhaps as something that is an "Introductory Offer" if someone moves a balance from their existing card to that "Intro offer" card, and then it usually reverts back to that near-fixed "high rate" after some "tiny print" number of months later.

So you'll see stuff like this - Fact brief: Is South Dakota one of the friendliest states for credit card companies?

Where SD became a place where a number of companies moved to.

[mwooldri]

6. Bank of America CEO is right on this.

I know what life is like with a non independent central bank. The Bank of England used to be in bed with the government of the day. Interest rate policies were set at No. 11 Downing Street. In the late 1980s, early 1990s, the UK government policy of the time was to keep the UK Pound Sterling within the European Exchange Rate Mechanism - with the aim of eventually joining the Euro.

A certain billionaire financier called George Soros decided to get big against the Bank of England .... and the UK government. He won in the end. UK ended up having crazy high interest rates for a bit, the Pound withdrew from the Exchange Rate Mechanism, didn't join the Euro... Yep the British folks were punished. The Labour government under Blair got the process underway to give the Bank of England its independence. And those crazy high interest rates for a time impacted me directly as it made my dad's adjustable rate mortgage way too expensive and we ended up losing our home as a result.

The US Federal Reserve needs to remain independent. Having a board that sets rates based on the mood of the person in charge at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.... It would IMO be a disaster.

[FredGarvin]

7. Look at inflation vs Fed rates over a 25 year period

The US Federal Reserve remain independent?

Dont be silly.

The Fed works for Wall Street

[BumRushDaShow]

9. "Look at inflation vs Fed rates over a 25 year period"

I post some version of this often (this goes back to the '40s I think, to ~ the early 2020s) -



The last one I have archived -



(from July 2000 - May 2025... need to go save a more recent one when I get time, with the latest couple rate drops)

[FredGarvin]

10. I remember getting 10% on savings back in 1980 when I was a kid

https://www.voronoiapp.com/real-estate/-US-Nominal-vs-Real-House-Price-Index-Trends-19702024-3066

Lowering rates is a fools errand.

The cost of housing is a pretty good indicator, instead of CNBS data