Fed's Kelley: Big Banks On Top Of Yr 2000 Computer Glitch
Dow Jones Newswires
WASHINGTON -- The country's largest banks generally are doing a good job dealing with year 2000 computer problem, but progress at smaller institutions is lagging, Federal Reserve Board Governor Edward Kelley testified Wednesday.
Kelley outlined the steps the Fed and the banking industry are taking to address the problem during a hearing before the Senate Banking Subcommittee on Financial Services and Technology.
"I want to assure you the Federal Reserve is giving the year 2000 its highest priority, commensurate with our goal of maintaining the stability of the nation's financial markets and payments systems, preserving public confidence, and supporting reliable government operations," Kelley said in prepared testimony.
Computer programmers around the world are working to fix the year 2000 problem, which is a result of the fact that most older compters store dates as two digits. That glitch, if not corrected, could cause computers to view the year 2000 as the year 1900, wreaking havoc in computer systems at businesses, government agencies and other institutions.
"Generally speaking, the nation's largest banks have done much to address the issue and have devoted significant financial and human resources to preparing for the date change," Kelley said.
"Smaller banks, including the U.S. offices of foreign banks and those dependent on a third party to provide their computer services, are generally aware of the issues and are working on the problem; however, their progress is less visible and will be carefully monitored as part of our supervision program," he said.
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