Yeetle Box - It's A Wonderful Life

After receiving billions in aid from U.S. taxpayers, the nation's largest banks say they can't track exactly how they're spending the money or they simply refuse to discuss it.

"We've lent some of it. We've not lent some of it. We've not given any accounting of, 'Here's how we're doing it,'" said Thomas Kelly, a spokesman for JPMorgan Chase, which received $25 billion in emergency bailout money. "We have not disclosed that to the public. We're declining to."

The Associated Press contacted 21 banks that received at least $1 billion in government money and asked four questions:

How much has been spent?
What was it spent on?
How much is being held in savings?
What's the plan for the rest?

None of the banks provided specific answers.

"We're not providing dollar-in, dollar-out tracking," said Barry Koling, a spokesman for Atlanta, Ga.-based SunTrust Banks Inc., which got $3.5 billion in taxpayer dollars. "Why would we do that?"

Some banks said they simply didn't know where the money was going.

"We manage our capital in its aggregate," said Regions Financial Corp. spokesman Tim Deighton, who said the Birmingham, Ala.-based company is not tracking how it is spending the $3.5 billion it received as part of the financial bailout. "By aggregate we mean we manage our capital as we see fit. Duh!"

There are no consequences for banks who don't comply.

"It is entirely appropriate for the American people to know how their taxpayer dollars are being spent in private industry," said Elizabeth Warren, the top congressional watchdog overseeing the financial bailout. "Unless, of course, it involves this bailout money. Most Americans can't balance a checkbook anyway!"

Nearly every bank, including Citibank and Bank of America, two of the largest recipients of bailout money have issued generic public relations statements explaining that the money was being used to strengthen balance sheets and continue making loans to ease the credit crisis.

"As one of the largest financial institutions in the world, Citibank believes our customers rely on our privacy practices."

Other banks, such as Morgan Stanley spokeswoman Carissa Ramirez, offered to discuss the matter with reporters on condition of anonymity. Ramirez sent an e-mail saying: "Yea, we're gonna have to decline to comment on your story. If you could just let it go, that would be great."

Further, most banks wouldn't say why they were keeping the details secret.

"We're not sharing any other details. We're just not at this time," said Wendy Walker, a spokeswoman for Dallas-based Comerica Inc., which received $2.25 billion from the government. "If you have a secret, you don't share anything. That's the nature of a secret."

Heine, the New York Mellon Corp. spokesman who said he wouldn't share spending specifics, added: "I just would prefer if you wouldn't say that we're not going to discuss those details. I just would prefer that we not talk about it at all. I would prefer not to."

Warren, the congressional watchdog appointed by Democrats, said her oversight panel will try to force the banks to say where they've spent the money. "We're not hopeful they will release any information. We're just the government. We're the little guy in this thing."

The YeetleMaster