By Karen Petrou and Drake Palmer
“Public” banks have been touted since before the U.S. Revolution as a remedy for a variety of common financial ailments, most recently as a cure for private banking’s presumed indifference to public purpose in order to protect personal profit. The 21st-Century Equality Bank we previously outlined is one way to align a bank’s private interest with public purpose without public subsidy. Is it enough or are public banks also required? The public-bank scorecard documents several centuries of well-intentioned financial institutions brought down due to immunity from effective regulation and a lack of market discipline. Given the renewed interest in public banks, will this time be different? We doubt it. Continue reading “Public or Perish? The Future of Public Banking”