Getting Banks to Spin Off Trading Desks Was the Point of the Volcker Rule

The Washington Post had a useful piece on the Treasury Department's adoption of a stronger than expected version of the Volcker Rule, which is likely to seriously limit the extent of proprietary trading at the major banks. At one point the piece tells readers;

"In anticipation of the Volcker rule, many large banks, including JPMorgan, have shuttered or spun off their proprietary trading desks, as well as their private-
equity arms and hedge funds. That could blunt the full force of the rule, a...