Although the founding members of those "elite" families lived and died decades ago, their legacies live on, as does the unequaled power and influence of big banks. The history of these banks ties some of them directly with the elite families Master Fard Muhammad came to destroy. JP Morgan Chase was founded in 1799 as the Manhattan Corporation, becoming Chase National in 1877. In 1930 that bank merged with John D. Rockefeller's Equitable Trust to become the world's largest bank.
Citigroup, founded in 1812 as the City Bank of New York, eventually captured the title of "America's largest bank" in 1894. James Stillman Rockefeller served as bank president from 1952-1959 and as Chairman from 1959-1967.
Henry Wells and William Fargo, the two founders of American Express, formed Wells Fargo in 1852 as a company offering express (delivery) and banking services.
Amadeo Giannini, the son of Italian immigrants to the US, founded the Bank of Italy in San Francisco, California in 1904 for the "little fellows," i.e., Italian immigrants American banks refused to serve. He branched out to serve other immigrant communities and grew to own the 3 rd largest bank in the country by the 1920s. He went on to start Bank of America in 1930 which later blossomed into the largest bank in the US.
Ally Financial, according to its website, was founded in 1919 as General Motors Acceptance Corporation (GMAC) to provide financing to automobile customers. Today, the company also provides insurance, online banking, mortgage operations and commercial finance services. In 2005, Residential Capital, LLC became GMAC's parent company for its mortgage business and, in 2008, received approval as a bank holding company. The name change to Ally took place in 2010 after the housing crisis and General Motors, GMAC's parent company, encountered grave financial difficulties. The banking arm of the company received $5 billion in funds as part of the much criticized government bailout plan that extended lifelines to large banks on the verge of going under because of the housing crisis.
Other banking history shows that in 1755, Mayer Amschel Rothschild founded what became a banking "dynasty" that started in Germany then spread to England and beyond, earning him the title "founding father of international finance". The Rothschild Group's wealth, influence and position passed down from one generation to the next and according to the company's website, they have "been at the center of the world's financial markets for over 200 years."
Despite the humble beginnings of these institutions, big bankers were seen as a negative force in the eyes of Fard Muhammad whose mission was to destroy them and all they stood for. Congresswoman Waters, although not calling for the destruction of banks, still finds reasons to "press banking regulators for more aggressive action on servicing fraud."
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