The title of this post is a quote from John McDonnell, an influential MP in the UK’s Labour Party.  And the bankers in the City of London are square in the middle of the bullseye for where this change is going to take place.

And the bankers are keenly aware of this fact.

Mr. McDonnell apparently relishes upsetting the bankers.  He observed

When they say we’re a threat, they’re right. We’re a threat to a damaging and failed system that’s rigged for the few.

He has called for a ban on banker bonuses and, much more importantly, a public inquiry into how the financial sector actually works with the intent of rooting out misconduct and corruption.

The US had this type of public inquiry in the 1930s.  It was called the Pecora Commission.  What it found is opacity is Wall Street’s best friend.  Bankers have a strong tendency to misbehave behind a veil of opacity.

Based on this conclusion, transparency was introduced into the financial system.  As Justice Louis Brandeis said, sunlight is the best disinfectant.

You can expect McDonnell’s inquiry to reach the same finding about the impact of opacity on the City’s bankers and the need for transparency to end this misconduct.