U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on Friday said he welcomes a debate on how to tighten oversight of the financial system to prevent another economic meltdown but also stressed that stakeholders must agree to act quickly. Federal regulators are pushing back against the administration's plan to take away their consumer protection duties and establish a separate agency to focus on the mission. In testimony prepared for a hearing ahead of the U.S. House of Representatives, Geithner defended the plan as the best approach. He said the current system scatters responsibility and is slow to respond because it requires consensus among the various regulators. Head of the Federal Reserve, Ben Bernanke is also set to testify ahead of the U.S. House of Representatives' Financial Services panel. Bernanke was expected to tell the Financial Services panel that the Fed's roles in ensuring bank soundness and protecting consumers are complementary and that they give regulators valuable insight into the behavior of both banks and their customers. Bernanke's push back comes as he nears the end of his term. After it expires early next year, U.S. President Barack Obama will have to decide whether to reappoint him. Bernanke, an appointee of former U.S. President George W. Bush, took over the Fed in February 2006.
