A U.S. congressman has urged the federal government to temporarily insure every bank deposit in the country. Following the collapses of several major banks, he stressed that if the government does not do this, there will be a run on smaller banks. “This is a contagion that could be spread across the entire banking system,” he warned.
Lawmaker Warns of Runs on Smaller Banks
U.S. Congressman Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-MO), a former banker and a member of the House Financial Services Committee, said last week that the government should temporarily insure every bank deposit in the country.
His statement followed the collapses of several major banks, including Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank. To prevent economic damage, the Biden administration and regulators guaranteed all deposits at the two banks, even those exceeding the $250,000 Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) deposit insurance limit.
Noting that expanding the deposit guarantee would “give the system confidence,” Luetkemeyer was quoted by Politico as saying:
If you don’t do this, there’s going to be a run on your smaller banks … Everyone’s going to take their money out and run to the JPMorgan’s and these too-big-to-fail banks, and they’re going to…
