Bernard Shull is Professor Emeritus in the Department of Economics, Hunter College, and a special consultant for National Economic Research Associates (NERA). He has held various positions in the Federal Reserve System, including Associate Advisor to the Board of Governors. He was also Senior Economist in the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. He has published widely in professional and academic journals on issues of monetary, banking, and financial policy, and is the co-author of two books, "Interest Rate Volatility" and "Bank Mergers in a Deregulated Environment" (Quorum, 2001).