UK: 'Banks to separate savings and investments in system overhaul'

one can only hope that we do the same here in the states........from the independent.co.uk....

"Britain's biggest banks are bracing themselves for a government-commissioned report tomorrow that will recommend a fundamental overhaul of the way they do business.

The interim report by the Independent Banking Commission (IBC) is expected to propose that banks separate their traditional functions, such as savings accounts, from riskier investment banking divisions. It is also expected to say that the merger of Lloyds TSB and HBOS at the peak of the financial crisis was an error, and that Gordon Brown should not have waived competition law to enable the merger to take place.

The big banks, such as Barclays and HSBC, have been lobbying against strict ring-fencing between retail and investment banking divisions because of costs estimated at up to £15bn a year. Critics also point out that the big bank collapses during the crash would not have been prevented by separating business functions"............read more here