James Bullard, the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, has been a strong proponent, or maybe it's more predictor, of the need for higher interest rates. A new interview with Reuters shows that he's still for further benchmark rate hikes, even more so than some others at the Fed. And yet he also doesn't expect either a recession of a banking crisis in the immediate future.

Bullard has been on record as saying the benchmark federal funds rate would need to top 5% and perhaps reach as high as 7%. In this most recent interview, he stepped back from the high end but still sees a greater total hike than many others at the Fed.

"The bulk of Fed policymakers as of March felt one more rate increase, which would raise the benchmark overnight interest rate to a range between 5.00% and 5.25%, was all that would be needed. That could come at the Fed's May 2-3 meeting," the Reuters report said. "While agreeing that the tightening cycle may be close to the finish line, Bullard feels the policy rate will need to rise another half of a percentage point beyond that level, to between 5.50% and 5.75%."