In the aftermath of the 2014 lockout, when a series of high-profile bank and financial crisis-related incidents shut down many lenders, the financial industry has come under intense scrutiny.
While the banks that suffered the most financial losses from the crisis remain untouched, others have been forced to close and re-open in recent years.
Some banks have made it clear that they will not reopen, despite public pleas to do so.
In February, a consortium of banks that included HSBC, Credit Suisse, and Barclays filed a lawsuit in federal court, arguing that the federal government should not be required to reopen their banks during the crisis, as it had done during the recession.
“The United States government did not enact a program to reopen the banks during this time period, and there is no evidence that the banks were in any financial jeopardy during the financial crisis,” the banks said in the lawsuit.
“Nor was there any indication that the bank closures were linked to the economic downturn.”
A judge in January agreed with the banks and the Obama administration, granting a stay of the ruling that would prevent the banks from reopening for another year, and allowing the bankruptcy of Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase.
The federal government also issued a memorandum to all banks, asking them to comply with the terms of the Bankruptcy Reform Act of 2012, which set the framework for bank closures and reinstating them.
It said banks were not obligated to reopen.
While the bank closings were not directly linked to this economic crisis, many people have blamed the crisis on banks, claiming that banks were failing to lend during the Great Recession.
On Friday, the Obama Administration again put the blame for the banks financial crisis squarely on the shoulders of banks.
As part of the financial recovery, the Administration is seeking to increase the number of new federal loan guarantees and reauthorize the Small Business Lending Program, which gives businesses up to $1 million in loan guarantees, to help them expand and hire more workers.
However, while the Federal Reserve has made several efforts to reduce the risk of defaults, it has been reluctant to impose new restrictions on banks.
The government has also asked the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) to consider regulating some types of bank deposits, and have asked the Securities and Exchange Commission to consider issuing new guidance that could help regulators better understand the types of financial products that banks offer to consumers.
In the meantime, the federal Government Accountability Office (GAO) has also been looking into the issue.
Earlier this year, GAO released a report that said the Federal Housing Administration, which is responsible for providing low-interest, government-backed loans to people who need them, was “underperforming its responsibilities.”
In addition, the report said that the government was unable to identify and provide information on bank failures and the extent of the risks that borrowers and lenders faced from them.