Key Highlights
- SBA simplified the loan forgiveness application process for PPP loans of $50,000 or less.
- Continued regulatory enforcement in enterprise risk management.
- DOJ publishes first Cryptocurrency Enforcement Framework.
- Attention to “vulnerable” customers, seen in FINRA rules for senior investors and CFPB guides for Children’s Savings Account programs.
Financial services regulatory and policy news
Banking
- FRB:
- Announced an enforcement action against a U.S. BHC related to enterprise risk management denoting areas of compliance risk management, data quality management, and internal controls; OCC assessed a related penalty against the bank
- Updated information on its emergency lending facilities:
- Released the periodic update on outstanding lending facilities
- Updated FAQs about the Municipal Liquidity Facility and announced a deadline for submitting a notice of interest in that facility
- Announced a competitive procurement process for key vendor roles
- Announced the 2020 Census of Finance Companies and Other Lenders
- CFPB:
- Issued a policy statement outlining the application process for early termination of administrative consent orders
- Published two guides on measuring the performance and outcomes of Children’s Savings Account programs
Capital markets
- SEC:
- Released a report on U.S. credit market interconnectedness and the effects of COVID-19
- Adopted a comprehensive regulatory framework for fund of funds arrangements
- Proposed a limited, conditional exemption from broker registration requirements for ‘finders’ assisting small business issuers with raising capital
- Testified about the work of Office of Minority and Women Inclusion to promote diversity and inclusion
- CFTC:
- Adopted amendments to reporting requirements for commodity pool operators under Form CPO-PQR and signed an MOU with the Office of Financial Research (OFR) to allow sharing of information reported on that form
- FINRA:
- Proposed amendments to “holds” under its Financial Exploitation of Specified Adults rule
Other:
- DOJ:
- Released “Cryptocurrency: An Enforcement Framework,” highlighting related federal enforcement priorities
- U.S. Treasury and SBA:
- NYDFS:
- Published an op-ed on environmental sustainability
- BIS:
- Announced the winners of TechSprint, a competition to highlight the potential of technology for regulators
- FSB:
- Published a progress report on the G20 Data Gaps Initiative, covering risk monitoring, vulnerabilities and interconnections, and data sharing
Industry news
- JPMorgan unveils $30 billion push to bridge racial wealth gap
- Morgan Stanley to buy Eaton Vance for $7 billion
- How COVID-19 reignited AI and automation in banking and financial services
- How lenders aim to profit from climate change
- Banks are permitted to hold crypto assets. Will they?
- PPP money abounded-but some got it faster than others