Key Highlights
- Juneteenth (June 19) introduces federal holiday operational and systems changes for financial services companies; CFPB issued an Interpretive Rule providing guidance on Regulation Z timing requirements related to the TRID rule.
- Heightened attention to tenant evictions and mortgage foreclosures seen across multiple agencies including CFPB, Treasury, CDC, and FHFA.
- OCC issued risk management principles for OCC-supervised institutions participating, directly or indirectly, in SBA lending programs; OCC states a bank’s SBA lending activities, including purchasing investments backed by SBA-guaranteed loans, should be consistent with the bank’s overall business plans, strategies, risk appetite, and sound risk management.
- Increasing calls for a regulatory framework around cryptocurrencies and digital assets: SEC said the agency needs more authority to cover “significant gaps” in investor protections; FRB laid out considerations for CBDCs; and bills have been introduced in Congress to define, regulate, and tax cryptocurrencies and digital assets.
Financial services regulatory and policy news
Banking
- FRB:
- Published capital requirements for large banks
- Published the Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey on Bank Lending Practices
- Extended the comment period on its proposed rule to govern funds transfers over FedNow℠ Services
- Spoke about CBDCs in the midst of payment system modernization and the FRB’s forthcoming paper
- Spoke about the uneven economic effects of the pandemic
- Published research papers:
- The Intangible Gender Gap: An Asset Channel of Inequality
- Student Loans, Access to Credit and Consumer Financial Behavior
- OCC:
- Published risk management principles for SBA guaranteed lending
- Provided supplemental examination procedures on remittance transfers
- CFPB:
- Issued an Interpretive Rule on the certain mortgage requirements impacted and the Juneteenth Holiday
- Released a blog post on the CDC eviction moratorium, and another for renters and homeowners facing foreclosure or eviction
- Confirmed two final debt collection rules (FDCPA) will take effect November 30, 2021
Capital Markets
- SEC:
- Spoke about cryptocurrency, national security, and investor protections
- Approved FINRA rules imposing obligations on firms with history of misconduct; Commissioner statement
- Released a Staff Statement on the proposed expert market
Other
- CDC:
- Extended the eviction moratorium for certain communities until October 3, 2021
- Treasury:
- Reiterated the call for state and local governments to simplify applications for rental assistance
- Announced a new FinCEN acting director
- Senate Banking Committee:
- Held hearings on:
- Protecting consumers from financial fraud and scams in the pandemic
- Oversight of financial regulators; FDIC testimony here, OCC testimony here
- House FS Committee:
- Passed 11 bills to advance investor protections, support manufactured housing communities, and promote de novo depository institutions
- FTC:
- Evaluated adjusting its merger reviewing process
- FHFA:
- Extended the REO eviction moratorium to September 30, 2021
- Encouraged landlords to apply for emergency rental assistance before evicting tenants
- NY FRB:
- Released a report showing who received forbearance relief
- BIS:
- Published a paper, Regulating Big Techs in Finance
- Released the CPMI work program, focusing on shaping the future of payments and addressing risks in financial market infrastructures
Industry news headlines
(Some links may require subscription)
- Show your workings: lenders push to demystify AI models (Risk.net)
- P.P.P. loan forgiveness portal opens, but big banks opt out. (NY Times)
- U.S. Treasury's Yellen touts infrastructure bill as reducing economic inequality (Reuters)
- Why smaller banks may follow megabanks' lead on climate disclosures (American Banker)
- Big banks are starting to push back their return to offices in response to the Delta variant (CNN)
- Nasdaq's Board Diversity Proposal Faces SEC Decision (WSJ)
- SEC Chief Gary Gensler Braces for Clash with Crypto Traders (WSJ)
- New Crypto bill in the US Congress is the most comprehensive yet (CoinDesk)
