Large Banks Suspend Share Buybacks to Support Economy

On Sunday, The Financial Services Forum announced that its eight members decided to temporarily suspend share buybacks for the remaining period of the first quarter and the second quarter of 2020.

The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented challenge for the world and the global economy and the largest U.S. banks have an unquestioned ability and commitment to supporting our customers, clients and the nation.

The decision on buybacks is consistent with our collective objective to use our significant capital and liquidity to provide maximum support to individuals, small businesses, and the broader economy through lending and other important services. The decision is consistent with actions by the Federal Reserve, the administration, and the Congress.

Financial Services Forum member institutions are Bank of America (NYSE: BAC), Bank of New York Mellon (NYSE: BK), Citigroup (NYSE: C), Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS), JP Morgan Chase (NYSE: JPM), Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS), State Street (NYSE: STT), and Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC).

Each member institution retains the ability to reinstate its buyback program as soon as circumstances warrant. The Forum members have apprised the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System of their decision.

Members of the Financial Services Forum, who are subject to the Large Institution Supervision Coordinating Committee supervisory program, remain strong and well-capitalized. They collectively have increased their capital, which acts as a buffer in times of stress, by more than 40 percent in the past 10 years to $914 billion. The members of the Forum have repeatedly passed the Federal Reserve’s annual stress tests, showing they are able to continue to lend and support the economy even during a severe economic downturn.

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