Seattle Public Municipal Bank Forum
December 10, 2014 7:00 pm—9:00 pm
University Temple, United Methodist Church
1415 NE 43rd, Seattle, WA 98105
Panel Discussion: Does Seattle Need a Municipal Bank?
Panel Moderator: Wayne Lau, Retired Banker, Executive Director of Rainier Valley Community Development Fund.
Panel Discussion:
Nick Licata, Seattle City Councilmember, Chair of Finance and Budget Committees
Dr. Thomas Keidel, Federation of German Banks, Board Representative
Dr. Karl Beitel, Author, Political Economist, UC Davis
Ms. Gwendolyn Hallsmith, Executive Director, Public Banking Institute, M.A. Public Policy
Seattle could have a public bank for public lending. Once the city capitalizes the bank, it can act like any bank by creating loans for local needs.
- Public banks can lend for local needs at rates that the global Wall Street banks are unlikely to find attractive.
- A public bank can reduce a city’s reliance on expensive private bond issuance, reducing the costs of capital projects by 30-40%.
- A city government can finance its projects through its own bank. The city earns interest, making more projects possible or lowering the tax burden.
- A public bank as it grows, can partner with community banks and credit unions to support small business with lending at reasonable rates.