Wall Street Tells Trump Financial System Strong, Ready to Support Borrowers
The U.S. banking industry is strong and ready to help businesses and consumers weather economic fallout from the fast-spreading coronavirus, Wall Street chief executives told President Donald Trump during a meeting at…

The U.S. banking industry is strong and ready to help businesses and consumers weather economic fallout from the fast-spreading coronavirus, Wall Street chief executives told President Donald Trump during a meeting at the White House on Wednesday.
“This is not a financial crisis. The banks and the financial system are in sound shape and we are here to help,” said Michael Corbat, chief executive of Citigroup <C.N>, during the meeting, which was broadcast from the White House Cabinet Room.
“We want to provide liquidity, we want to lend to our small businesses, we want to be supporting our consumer clients,” he added.
The Trump administration in recent days has tapped regulators to assess financial resilience and unveiled a fiscal stimulus package in response to growing fears the spread of the highly contagious virus could push the U.S. Economy into a recession.
Trump convened the executives on Wednesday to hear their views on the Economy and proposed stimulus package, which includes potential tax relief, paid family leave and small business assistance. Parts of the plan will require Congressional approval.
“The first thing is to add that fiscal stimulus in the time of stress is absolutely the right answer … Keeping people who are unemployed or under-employed with cash flow and money is key,” said Brian Moynihan, CEO of Bank of America <BAC.N>, adding the government needed to fix problems with the healthcare response to the virus, including by bolstering hospital capacity.



