Paul Volcker Former Chairman, Federal Reserve

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He of Volcker Rule fame?

Fame? You mean infamy. Not a day goes by without someone piling on to criticise the Volcker Rule, which bans US banks from "proprietary trading", that is, speculating with their own money.

Why is he a fan?

Now aged 84, Volcker cultivates the too-old-to-care air of a man telling time-worn truths to smart-asses half his age. He championed the ban on prop trading as by far the simplest way to cut banks down to size and cut the risk of them going belly up.

What do the critics say?

That in practice it is impossible to define prop trading precisely. Mr Volcker just shrugged at that one. "It's …