US banks reveal "living wills" Nine of the world's largest banks doing business in the US have told regulators how they should be broken up in the event that one of them nears failure. The so-called "living wills" provide regulators with detailed road maps that would help the government prevent a repeat of taxpayer-funded bailouts that took place during the financial crisis. Called for by the 2010 Dodd-Frank overhaul of US financial regulations, the plans came in two parts: a detailed confidential plan for regulators; and a general overview for the public of what would happen to the banks. JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley, Barclays, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank and UBS were the first to submit the living wills. More than 125 institutions are expected to produce resolution plans eventually. But the public portions of the plans contained few details beyond what the banks have already produced in securities filings. Dwight Smith, an attorney with Morrison & Foerster who is helping banks produce their living wills, said: "They really don't provide much insight." By comparison, a hypothetical plan by JPMorgan, explaining what would happen if it suffered a $50bn loss, forecast a "run on the bank" that might result in an additional $150bn loss and $200bn of temporary government funding to ensure the company was resolved smoothly. "I'm not sure there's much meaning to a living will other than that which is confidential and proprietary," Mr Smith said. Mitchell Glassman, director with Deloitte Consulting who previously oversaw resolutions at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, compared the public plans to a book's table of contents and introduction. In documents made public on Tuesday, the banks offered different solutions in case of distress, with some highlighting asset disposals while others expected a government takeover. JPMorgan told the FDIC and the Federal Reserve it preferred that the FDIC create a bridge company, recapitalising the holding company in part by swapping creditors" claims with new equity, and leaving key subsidiaries to continue operating without being placed in liquidation. BofA's plan called for its banking subsidiaries to be put into government receivership. Deutsche Bank told regulators it assumed that Germany's financial supervisor, Bafin, would transfer its systemically important subsidiaries and affiliates to a bridge entity while the rest of the institution was wound down or sold. Several of the institutions said they had business lines that could easily be sold in case of distress. JPMorgan said many of its core units "are global leaders" that would have "multiple, diverse and not necessarily overlapping potential buyers."