Has the government turned a profit from bank money?

By Robert Farley
Published on Wednesday, June 10th, 2009 at 5:18 p.m.

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"In the first round of repayments"  from financial institutions that received TARP money, "the government has actually turned a profit."

Barack Obama, Tuesday, June 9th, 2009.

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In a White House speech, President Obama said that with the first bank repayments, "the government has actually turned a profit."

Admit it: When the federal government decided last fall to spend hundreds of billions to stabilize banks through the Troubled Assets Relief Program, or TARP, you thought the money was as good as gone.

Not so, President Barack Obama said at the White House on June 9, 2009.

"Several financial institutions are set to pay back $68 billion to taxpayers," he said. "And while we know that we will not escape the worst financial crisis in decades without some losses to taxpayers, it's worth noting that in the first round of repayments from these companies the government has actually turned a profit."

We checked with experts and found Obama was right — to a point. Read our full report .