Contact: Mark Bednar
202-738-0744

Washington, D.C. – Congressman Sean Duffy (R-WI), Chairman of the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Housing & Insurance, today discussed the scope of the Federal Reserve’s authority in American corporate board rooms with Fed Chair Janet Yellen.

Duffy pressed Chair Yellen on the role that the Federal Reserve Board plays on corporate board rooms, specifically on the aspects of what the Federal Reserve can require of a board under the auspices of safety and soundness. He went further by confirming that everything falls under the scope of safety and soundness, with the potential to force them to make changes in any number of areas without any liability.

Congressman Duffy noted that corporate board members have a fiduciary duty to their shareholders, and have civil and criminal liability for their actions, and inquired if the Federal Reserve was held to the same standard. When asked by Duffy if the Federal Reserve has “civil or criminal liability should things go wrong on a corporate board,” Yellen admitted, “not to the best of my knowledge.”

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