7 Given the speed and magnitude of the swing in the stance of Total credit card balances were $ trillion in November, relative to $ trillion in December 2019, and the share of borrowers with consumer loans in delinquency has rebounded to pre-pandemic levels. For more information on credit card balances, see Statistical Release G.19, “Consumer Credit,” available on the Board’s website at https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/g19/current/default.htm.
Market based financial systems were supposed to have reduced the dependence of the financial system on banks. However, with increased market-orientation of bank balance sheets, banks emerged as the proverbial guerilla in the room.