For nearly six months following former Chairman Timothy G. Massad’s resignation from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”), the CFTC operated with only two commissioners, current Chairman J. Christopher Giancarlo and Commissioner Sharon Y. Bowen. Even with only two commissioners, the CFTC was able to undertake several regulatory initiatives, including Project KISS, an effort towards … Continue Reading
This morning, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (“OCC”) released a Request for Information (“RFI”) to determine how regulations implementing the Volcker Rule should be revised to better accomplish the purposes of the statute. The OCC’s release notes that the information the agency is soliciting could support revisions to the regulation that are consistent … Continue Reading
In remarks on Wednesday before the Exchequer Club in Washington, Acting Comptroller of the Currency Keith Noreika responded to State regulators and consumer advocates who have criticized the OCC’s proposed special purpose fintech charter (the proposed charter is discussed in this Covington client alert). Acting Comptroller Noreika’s comments on the fintech charter reflect an evolution … Continue Reading
On Thursday, July 13, Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen testified before the Senate Banking Committee. During this hearing, Chair Yellen stated that the Federal Reserve (the “Fed”) is open to modifying the threshold for designating banks as systematically important financial institutions (“SIFIs”). She reiterated that the Fed would not oppose raising the current asset threshold—which … Continue Reading
On July 10, 2017, the FDIC published for comment a handbook on deposit insurance applications, Deposit Insurance Applications: Procedures Manual. The manual covers each step in the application process: pre-filing activities, application receipt, review and acceptance, application processing, pre-opening activities and post-opening considerations. The FDIC has two audiences and purposes in issuing the manual. For potential bank organizers, the manual provides greater clarity of … Continue Reading
On July 7, 2017, the Consumer Financial Protection Agency (“CFPB”) announced final amendments to its “Know Before You Owe” (“KBYO”) mortgage disclosure rule to memorialize informal guidance regarding the rule, clarify certain aspects of the rule, and provide implementation guidance to industry. The CFPB also issued a proposed rule regarding when a creditor may compare … Continue Reading
On June 12, 2017, the U.S. Department of the Treasury released the first of a series of reports recommending regulatory reforms to the financial system consistent with President Trump’s Core Principles for Regulating the United States Financial System. Treasury’s first report focuses on the regulatory framework governing the depository system. Notably, a substantial portion of … Continue Reading
On June 15, 2017, the CFPB announced that it is proposing for public comment certain modifications to its prepaid rule. The rule, which was issued in final form in October 2016, limits consumers’ losses for lost and stolen prepaid cards, requires financial institutions to investigate errors, and includes enhanced disclosure provisions. The final rule unexpectedly … Continue Reading
On June 8, 2017, Acting Chair J. Christopher Giancarlo of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) made his request for the CFTC’s budget for fiscal year 2018 (“FY 2018”) to the House Appropriations Committee Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development and Related Agencies (“Subcommittee”). Acting Chair Giancarlo is seeking an increase in the CFTC’s budget from … Continue Reading
In its decision in Kokesh v. SEC, issued on Monday, June 5, 2017, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that “disgorgement” of ill-gotten gains by the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) is a “penalty” within the meaning of 28 U.S.C. § 2462. As a result, disgorgement is unavailable to the SEC in judicial proceedings involving conduct … Continue Reading
The House of Representatives voted this afternoon to pass the Financial CHOICE Act (“CHOICE 2.0”), its comprehensive financial regulatory reform bill. The key provisions of CHOICE 2.0 are summarized in our client alert of April 24, 2017, available here, although the bill has evolved somewhat since April. As we wrote late last month, Representative Jeb … Continue Reading
On May 24, 2017, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit held en banc oral argument in the rehearing of PHH Corp., et al. v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“PHH”). The lively oral argument extended well beyond the time originally allotted by the Court, as lawyers for PHH, the Department of Justice, and … Continue Reading
Federal financial agencies are taking steps to reevaluate the Volcker Rule as part of the Trump Administration’s review of financial regulations. In a May 8, 2017 meeting of the Financial Stability Oversight Council, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin reportedly directed the five agencies responsible for the Volcker Rule – the Board of Governors of the Federal … Continue Reading
The Treasury Department announced today that Comptroller of the Currency Thomas Curry would be stepping down from his post effective this Friday, May 5, 2017. Keith Noreika, a Washington, D.C., banking lawyer who was part of President Trump’s transition team for Treasury, will be appointed First Deputy Comptroller of the Currency and will serve as … Continue Reading
On April 26, 2017, the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (“CSBS”) filed a complaint against the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (“OCC”) and Comptroller of the Currency Thomas J. Curry to block the agency from going forward with its proposal to grant special purpose national bank charters to fintech companies. The CSBS filed … Continue Reading
On April 19, 2017, the House Financial Services Committee released a new discussion draft of the Financial CHOICE Act, its comprehensive regulatory reform bill. The Committee released the first version of the CHOICE Act in June 2016. Buoyed by the election of a Republican president, and following several months of public and industry outreach, Committee … Continue Reading
On Friday, April 21, President Donald Trump signed two presidential memoranda, directing the Secretary of the Treasury (the “Secretary”), Steve Mnuchin, to review two major provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act: orderly liquidation authority (“OLA”) for financial companies under Title II, and the decision-making processes of the Financial Stability Oversight Council (“FSOC”). Consistent with the Trump … Continue Reading
On April 5, 2017, the House Financial Services Committee held a hearing at which Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) Director Richard Cordray was the sole witness. During the five hours of the hearing, a wide partisan split over the performance of the CFPB and Director Cordray was on full display. Throughout, Republicans characterized the CFPB … Continue Reading
On April 4, 2017, Federal Reserve Board Governor Daniel K. Tarullo gave his final speech as a governor before his departure from the Board the next day. Governor Tarullo, widely considered the “most influential Wall Street regulator” during his term as governor, took the lead for the Federal Reserve in developing the agency’s most significant … Continue Reading
On March 30, 2017, the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (“BCBS”) issued a consultative document to revise the methodology it uses to measure the systemic importance of internationally active banks. The BCBS methodology incorporates various quantitative indicators of a bank’s “Cross-Jurisdictional Activity,” “Size,” “Interconnectedness,” “Substitutability,” and “Complexity” to arrive at a single score of each … Continue Reading
On March 28, 2017, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released its monthly complaint report. For the month of February 2017, the products and services generating the most complaints were debt collection, credit reporting, and mortgages, collectively representing over 60% of all complaints received. This is a shift over January, where the three most complained … Continue Reading
As has been widely reported, FDIC Vice Chairman Thomas Hoenig put forward in remarks to the Institute of International Bankers on Monday, March 13, a “Market-Based Proposal for Regulatory Relief and Accountability” (the “Hoenig Proposal” or the “Proposal”). If adopted, the Hoenig Proposal would substantially change the regulation of large and complex banking organizations doing … Continue Reading
In separate remarks at the Lendit USA 2017 conference on March 6, 2017, Thomas Curry, the Comptroller of the Currency, and Richard Cordray, the Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), discussed their respective agencies’ approaches to fintech. Although neither agency head made any groundbreaking announcement, their remarks provide an up-to-date summary of the … Continue Reading
On March 2, 2017 the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) released a “special edition” supervisory report that focused on improvements made in the credit reporting industry since the CFPB began supervising the industry in 2012. This report follows on the heels of the monthly complaints report the CFPB released on March 1, 2017, which also … Continue Reading
