London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Nov 21, 2025

Biden team defends Yellen making millions in speaking fees from big corporations

Biden team defends Yellen making millions in speaking fees from big corporations

The Biden team responded this weekend to criticism of President-elect Joe Biden’s treasury secretary pick Janet Yellen after it was revealed she raked in more than $7 million as a speaker from Wall Street firms and other corporations after leaving the Federal Reserve in 2018.

The Biden team responded this weekend to criticism of President-elect Joe Biden’s treasury secretary pick Janet Yellen after it was revealed she raked in more than $7 million as a speaker from Wall Street firms and other corporations after leaving the Federal Reserve in 2018.

"Janet Yellen is among the pre-eminent economic policymakers in the world today. Since leaving the Fed after several decades in public service, she has spoken at economic conferences, universities and to business groups and financial institutions about her experiences ... Her experience and expertise are the reasons President-elect Biden wanted her on his team working for him and on behalf of the American people to help us build back better from this economic crisis," a Biden transition team spokesperson said in a statement.

"Take a look at her record on enforcement – this is not someone who pulls punches when it comes to bad actors or bad behavior. You can expect she will bring the same high ethical standards and tough enforcement philosophy to Treasury," the spokesperson continued. "In fact, she didn’t hesitate to tell some audiences that the rules governing their business should be tougher and more stringent – and it could create problems for the economy otherwise."


Federal Reserve Chairman Janet Yellen waits for a hearing of the Joint Economic Committee on Capitol Hill, November 29, 2017, in Washington, DC.


Yellen received nearly $1 million from Citi alone after delivering nine speeches to the bank.

Other companies shelling out big bucks for Yellen’s speeches have included Goldman Sachs, Google, City National Bank, UBS, Citadel LLC, Barclays and Salesforce.



Yellen delivered a total of more than 50 speeches to the companies, The Wall Street Journal reported.

She plans to resign from a position with Magellan Financial Group of Australia if confirmed for the Treasury job, according to the Wall Street Journal.

It remained unclear whether Yellen’s disclosures would cause problems with Democrats in Congress who supported her, including Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., who had called Yellen an “outstanding choice” to lead the Treasury, Politico reported.



Warren has previously complained about a “revolving door” for officials who go back and forth between government jobs and lucrative positions in the private sector.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
ASU Launches ASU London, Extending Its Innovation Brand to the UK Education Market
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer to Visit China in January as Diplomatic Reset Accelerates
Google Launches Voluntary Buyouts for UK Staff Amid AI-Driven Company Realignment
UK braces for freezing snap as snow and ice warnings escalate
Majority of UK Novelists Fear AI Could Displace Their Work, Cambridge Study Finds
UK's Carrier Strike Group Achieves Full Operational Capability During NATO Drill in Mediterranean
Trump and Mamdani to Meet at the White House: “The Communist Asked”
Nvidia Again Beats Forecasts, Shares Jump in After-Hours Trading
Wintry Conditions Persist Along UK Coasts After Up to Seven Centimetres of Snow
UK Inflation Eases to 3.6 % in October, Opening Door for Rate Cut
UK Accelerates Munitions Factory Build-Out to Reinforce Warfighting Readiness
UK Consumer Optimism Plunges Ahead of November Budget
A Decade of Innovation Stagnation at Apple: The Cook Era Critique
Caribbean Reparations Commission Seeks ‘Mutually Beneficial’ Justice from UK
EU Insists UK Must Contribute Financially for Access to Electricity Market and Broader Ties
UK to Outlaw Live-Event Ticket Resales Above Face Value
President Donald Trump Hosts Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at White House to Seal Major Defence and Investment Deals
German Entertainment Icons Alice and Ellen Kessler Die Together at Age 89
UK Unveils Sweeping Asylum Reforms with 20-Year Settlement Wait and Conditional Status
UK Orders Twitter Hacker to Repay £4.1 Million Following 2020 High-Profile Breach
Popeyes UK Eyes Century Mark as Fried-Chicken Chain Accelerates Roll-out
Two-thirds of UK nurses report working while unwell amid staffing crisis
Britain to Reform Human-Rights Laws in Sweeping Asylum Policy Overhaul
Nearly Half of Job Losses Under Labour Government Affect UK Youth
UK Chancellor Reeves Eyes High-Value Home Levy in Budget to Raise Tens of Billions
UK Urges Poland to Choose Swedish Submarines in Multi-Billion € Defence Bid
US Border Czar Tom Homan Declares UK No Longer a ‘Friend’ Amid Intelligence Rift
UK Announces Reversal of Income Tax Hike Plans Ahead of Budget
Starmer Faces Mounting Turmoil as Leaked Briefings Ignite Leadership Plot Rumours
UK Commentator Sami Hamdi Returns Home After US Visa Revocation and Detention
UK Eyes Denmark-Style Asylum Rules in Major Migration Shift
UK Signals Intelligence Freeze Amid US Maritime Drug-Strike Campaign
TikTok Awards UK & Ireland 2025 Celebrates Top Creators Including Max Klymenko as Creator of the Year
UK Growth Nearly Stalls at 0.1% in Q3 as Cyberattack Halts Car Production
Apple Denied Permission to Appeal UK App Store Ruling, Faces Over £1bn Liability
UK Chooses Wylfa for First Small Modular Reactors, Drawing Sharp U.S. Objection
Starmer Faces Growing Labour Backlash as Briefing Sparks Authority Crisis
Reform UK Withdraws from BBC Documentary Amid Legal Storm Over Trump Speech Edit
UK Prime Minister Attempts to Reassert Authority Amid Internal Labour Leadership Drama
UK Upholds Firm Rules on Stablecoins to Shield Financial System
Brussels Divided as UK-EU Reset Stalls Over Budget Access
Prince Harry’s Remembrance Day Essay Expresses Strong Regret at Leaving Britain
UK Unemployment Hits 5% as Wage Growth Slows, Paving Way for Bank of England Rate Cut
Starmer Warns of Resurgent Racism in UK Politics as He Vows Child-Poverty Reforms
UK Grocery Inflation Slows to 4.7% as Supermarkets Launch Pre-Christmas Promotions
UK Government Backs the BBC amid Editing Scandal and Trump Threat of Legal Action
UK Assessment Mis-Estimated Fallout From Palestine Action Ban, Records Reveal
UK Halts Intelligence Sharing with US Amid Lethal Boat-Strike Concerns
King Charles III Leads Britain in Remembrance Sunday Tribute to War Dead
UK Retail Sales Growth Slows as Households Hold Back Ahead of Black Friday and Budget
×