Monthly Financial Reports for Banks

An article from CNN (http://money.cnn.com/2009/01/20/news/companies/bank_data.reut/index.htm) writes The Treasury Department is requiring that all banks that received aid through the Trouble Asset Relief Program submit monthly reports on lending activities and data on mortgage-backed securities and asset-backed securities. Some of these banks include Bank of America, Wells Fargo, JP Morgan, and Citigroup. The purpose of the financial aid was to strengthen and restore lending activity for consumers and businesses, but some critics argue that banks are not taking full advantage of this bailout cash by not creating loans. Submitting these monthly reports should drive the banks to create more loans. Why is this important? Financial institutions, such as banks, are a vital component of our economy. They provide loans for consumers for houses, our single most valuable asset, automobiles, and other needs while investing in our businesses. When they fail, the economy fails. We are not going to dig ourselves out of this recession without restoring the strength of one of the basic building blocks of our economy.