LAWMAKERS HIT WALL STREET BANK CEOS OVER FEES — Reuters’ Pete Schroeder: “The heads of major U.S. retail banks faced renewed criticism Thursday from Democratic lawmakers who said financial institutions should not have charged Americans billions of dollars in overdraft and other fees during the pandemic. “Testifying before Congress for the second time this week, the CEOs of JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup Inc and Wells Fargo & Co highlighted their banks' efforts to waive fees and offer more affordable accounts after Senator Elizabeth Warren attacked them over the costs.” DIMON SHARPENS CRITICISM OF BIDEN’S TAX HIKE PROPOSAL — Bloomberg’s Steven T. Dennis: “JPMorgan Chase & Co. Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon has twice in this hearing before a congressional committee sharply criticized President Joe Biden’s proposed tax hikes, which are aimed at people making more than $400,000 and at corporations. "He has previously questioned them, but today said that that level of tax increases would be four times bigger than the GOP’s 2017 tax cuts and called that ‘a mistake.’” CITI CEO SAYS BANK RETHINKING REBUFF OF RACIAL AUDIT — Bloomberg’s Jennifer Surane and Saijel Kishan: “Citigroup Inc. is reconsidering a shareholder proposal that would require its board to oversee an audit analyzing the firm’s adverse impacts on communities of color. “Nearly 40 percent of shareholders voted in favor of such an audit during the firm’s annual meeting last month. Even though Citigroup’s board recommended investors vote against the proposal and it failed, Chief Executive Officer Jane Fraser said Thursday that the bank is considering it once again.” BLACK BUSINESS OWNERS TURNED TO FINTECH TO GET PANDEMIC AID — Bloomberg’s Cecile Daurat and Alexandre Tanzi: “Black-owned businesses were much likelier than their peers to use online lenders than traditional banks when applying for U.S. pandemic relief loans, according to a study by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. “About one in four Black owners seeking a Paycheck Protection Program loan applied to a fintech company, more than twice the rate of Whites, Asians and Hispanics, the New York Fed said in a blog post, part of its Economic Inequality series.” JOBLESS CLAIMS DROP TO NEW PANDEMIC LOW — WSJ’s Amara Omeokwe: “Worker filings for jobless benefits fell again to a fresh pandemic low, extending a steady downward trend and adding to signs of a healing labor market and a broader, though uneven, economic recovery. Initial unemployment claims for regular state programs, a proxy for layoffs, fell last week to 406,000 from 444,000 the prior week, the Labor Department said Thursday. “That level represents the lowest levels of claims since the coronavirus pandemic’s onset last year and the fourth consecutive week claims have reached a new pandemic low. Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal had forecast there were 425,000 new claims last week.” YELLEN SAYS TREASURY NEEDS MORE FUNDS TO OVERSEE RECOVERY — NYT’s Alan Rappeport: “Treasury Secretary Janet L. Yellen warned on Thursday that her agency lacked sufficient resources to oversee an economic recovery that still has ‘a long road ahead’ and called on Congress to provide her with more funds to oversee a sprawling set of relief programs. “In testimony before a House appropriations subcommittee, Ms. Yellen expressed confidence that the end of the pandemic recession was in sight, but said that the Treasury Department is facing an overwhelming task in disbursing hundreds of billions of dollars of relief money with the same budget that it had a decade ago. The Treasury Department has been central to the federal government’s response to the health crisis, funneling stimulus payments and aid to millions of Americans, states, cities and businesses.” The recovery is still likely to be “bumpy” though — AP’s Martin Crutsinger: “Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says that the economic recovery is going to be ‘bumpy’ with high inflation readings likely to last through the end of this year. But Yellen insisted that the inflation pressures will be temporary and if they do threaten to become embedded in the economy, the government has the tools to address that threat.” | 
