Despite voices labeling him the ‘safe choice’ for the presidential seat, Biden proved himself to be powerful enough to win the elections. But the new President has a range of people, who help him on a daily basis. Elizabeth Warren has actually run against Biden in the primaries and has of course lost. She has proven to be a crucial point of the new administration, having clashed with Citadel Securities and Robinhood just a few weeks after the new President’s swearing-in.
Elizabeth Warren’s time to shine
Warren has not been appointed as the cabinet member, but she still is a really prominent figure, and it looks like she could become am important member of the administration. The President himself agreed that the progressive agenda will require strong leaders. Thus, Biden seems to be confirming Warren’s expected role in the House of Senate.
Their relationship has been bumpy, and there have been quite a lot of disagreements between the two. But Biden has been sending some positive signals by supporting the bankruptcy plan prepared by Warren. This looks like a perfect occasion for her to strengthen her persona as the Democrats party figure, and not just someone who lost to the President.
The Senator has been in the first line of Wall Street critics, and she was always pointing at the lack of transparency there. She was also the one responsible for the CPFB (Consumer Protection Financial Bureau) establishment, which became part of the 2010 Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.
She ran for the Senate for the first time in 2012, having raised $39 million to fund her campaign – the most amongst the candidates. NY Times wrote about her win as the proof that you could be running for the seat against banks, not being supported by Wall Street money, and still manage to win.
Warren has also been the heavy critic of Trump’s administration, and its approach of loosening the financial market’s rules. She also has some notable achievements pursuing unlawful banks and companies. Her work and persistent pressure on Wells Fargo led to prosecution of the bank’s officials for the fake accounts scandal. Because of her, John Stumpf agreed to be banned for life from working in the banking, and paid a fine of $17.5 million. Her next target was Tim Sloan, who resigned from his role at Wells Fargo as well in 2019.
And although she was crucial in the process of shaping the rules for the world of finances after the 2008 crisis, Warren could become even more valuable during her time of service on Joe Biden’s side.
The current state of the world, as we’re still submerged in the pandemic, could become Warren’s stage to shine. As she was always anti-big-banker, her opinions could now hit with the different power. Her most recent target is Robinhood, as she criticizes the app’s policies, as well as the relationship it has with Citadel Securities. It’s actually fascinating to see how quickly Robinhood ceased to be the favorite of small investors, and became the punching bag for national and global media.
Are they selling their consumers out?
Robinhood is a trading app that is advertised as ‘commission-free’. The company’s mission: to democratize finance, so that it becomes available for everyone. The ‘democratization’ phrase is visible everywhere – on their every social media platform, the website. Even Vladimir Tenev, the company’s CEO highlights it.
To get to know more about the topic of Warren’s issue with Robinhood, and much more, visit the Disruption Banking piece written by Benjamin Jenei: https://disruptionbanking.com/2021/03/10/disruption-or-democratisation-can-elizabeth-warren-help-democratize-finance/.
