Vikram Pandit: ‘Occupy Wall Street’ sentiments understandable
October 13th, 2011 - 11:24 am ICT by IANSWashington, Oct 13 (IANS) Banking giant Citigroup’s Indian American CEO Vikram Pandit thinks the sentiments of the Occupy Wall Street protesters are “completely understandable” as US economy recovery fell short of what was wanted.
“Their sentiments are completely understandable,” Pandit said in an interview Wednesday with Fortune Magazine. “The economic recovery is not what we all want it to be, there are a number of people in our country who cant achieve what they are capable of achieving and that’s not a good place to be.”
Demonstrators have been camped out in Manhattan’s financial district since Sep 17 protesting against income inequality, corporate greed and the power of financial institutions. The protests have inspired similar demonstrations across the country.
“I would also corroborate that trust has been broken between financial institutions and the citizens of the U.S. and that it’s Wall Street’s job to reach out to Main Street and rebuild that trust,” Pandit said.
“I’d talk about the fact that they should hold Citi and the financial institutions accountable for practicing responsible finance.”
Pandit added that he’d “be happy to talk to them anytime,” noting that he would emphasise Citi’s efforts to expand small business lending and their decision not to charge a fee for debit card use.
Bank of America announced last month that it would start charging a $5 fee for using a debit card for purchases starting in 2012. Wells Fargo also announced it would test a $3 fee.
(Arun Kumar can be contacted at arun.kumar@ians.in)
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- Bank of America cancels debit card fees - Nov 02, 2011
- Wells Fargo to charge $3 fee per month for debit cards - Aug 17, 2011
- `Occupiers' get advice from Bill Clinton - Nov 08, 2011
- Hundreds arrested at protests against corporate greed in US - Oct 17, 2011
- Obama, New Yorkers back Occupy Wall Street - Oct 18, 2011
- Google to turn your smartphones into credit cards! - Mar 30, 2011
- Citi's Pandit will work for $1 in 2010 too - Sep 25, 2010
- Financial protests spread across the globe - Oct 16, 2011
- Pandit's Citi Bank found wanting in stress test (Lead) - Mar 14, 2012
- New York mayor warns protesters to stay away from banks - Oct 08, 2011
- Scores arrested across US in 'Occupy Wall Street' protests - Oct 15, 2011
- US sues financial firms over mortgage losses - Sep 03, 2011
- Pandit's Citi to return $20 billion in bailout money - Dec 14, 2009
- Amid tough times, Citibank to cut 4500 jobs - Dec 07, 2011
Tags: arun kumar, bank of america, business lending, ceo, citigroup, corporate greed, demonstrations, demonstrators, economic recovery, financial institutions, fortune magazine, giant, income inequality, manhattan, protesters, protests, sentiments, vikram pandit, wall street, wells fargo