, Columnist
The 2 Trillion Reasons Why Fed Tightening Isn’t So Scary
Banks and investors have a big cushion to protect them from the end of QE
As the Fed rolls back QE, Chair Jerome Powell has banks’ back.
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Stubborn inflation means more interest-rate increases are coming from the Federal Reserve and that sounds like great news for banks. They’ve already been reporting booming net interest income: At JPMorgan Chase & Co., it was up 28% in 2022 and for Bank of America Corp., 22%.
But there are downsides to the Fed’s tighter monetary policy too, and those have bank executives and many investors fretting: The reversal of its bond-buying program and the shrinking of the central bank’s balance sheet, which will suck money out of the financial system and put pressure on markets and banks’ funding.