WASHINGTON (5/22/15)--Leading lawmakers aren’t thrilled with the punishments the Justice Department handed down to big banks Wednesday for their roles in colluding to fix the international currency market (Politico May 21). The banks, which pleaded guilty to felony charges, were ultimately hit with a total of $5.6 billion in fines for participating in the illegal practices. But Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) described the deal they received as a dud, and as “business as usual” (Politico). “The big banks have been caught red-handed conspiring to manipulate financial markets, and several have even admitted in court that they’re felons--but not a single trader is being held individually accountable, and regulators are stumbling over themselves to exempt the banks from the legally required consequence of their criminal behavior” ...