Last year, I travelled to Boston to speak with hundreds of bankers loosely affiliated with America’s Federal Home Loan Banks system. Before I arrived, I expected to find a group of people who were somewhat defensive, if not uneasy; after all, the word “bank” has not commanded popularity in recent years.
But, to my surprise, these bankers were cheery, and comfortable in their own professional skins. During the course of the day, they gave me cards emblazoned with the names of dozens of tiny, historic, all-American financial groups. And then they spoke about all the buildings and businesses they were funding in local communities, with a seemingly genuine sense of pride.
Never mind the fact that Wall Street was melting down, or that politicians were trying to stick bankers’ heads on pikes (metaphorically); these finance officials appeared to operate in a parallel universe, conducting their craft in an old-fashioned way, with deep roots in their towns. Or as one told me: “We are banks, but different from Wall Street. In fact, we hate a lot of what those Wall Street guys have done.”