The foreign bank proposal responds to fundamental changes over the last 15 years in the scope and scale of the U.S. operations of foreign banking organizations, many of which have moved beyond their traditional lending activities to engage in substantial capital markets activities and, in some cases, have become more reliant on short-term wholesale U.S. dollar funding.
It was made clear to them that short-term interest rates could fall below zero. Mindful of this, investors adjusted their interest rate expectations downwards; long-term interest rates have fallen. This has strengthened the desired effect on investment and consumption. The low interest rates are now being severely criticised, particularly in Germany.