This audience, I know, recognizes the importance of what is often called the “plumbing” of the financial system – a set of institutions that very safely and efficiently handles, under most circumstances, enormous volumes of financial transactions each day.
Because clearinghouses and other parts of the financial infrastructure fared relatively well during the crisis – despite moments of significant stress – the public debate on financial reform has understandably focused on the risks posed by so-called too-big-to-fail financial firms, whose dramatic failures or near failures put our financial system and economy in dire jeopardy.