Key Highlights
- CFPB outlined new priorities, including an immediate focus on supervision and enforcement of companies responsible for COVID-19 relief (e.g., servicers, PPP lenders) and putting “top priority” on fair lending and elevating and expanding investigations and exams to address racial equity.
- Focus on ESG issues, including response to Administration’s Climate and Racial Equity priorities, seen in:
- FRB formation of a new Supervisory Climate Committee
- New Executive Orders on climate and housing
- Announcements by large financial institutions to adopt the World Economic Forum ESG metrics and establish new hiring guidelines to promote diversity.
- Janet Yellen confirmed as Secretary of the Treasury; Commissioner Lee named Acting Chair of the SEC, Commissioner Benham named Acting Chairman of the CFTC, and Dave Uegio, Chief Strategy Office of the CFPB, was named Acting Director.
- OCC fair access rule and FinCEN proposed travel rule and cryptocurrency reporting requirements have been targeted for review by the new Administration as part of the “midnight regulations”.
Financial services regulatory and policy news
Banking
- FRB:
- Announced a new supervision climate committee within the Division of Supervision and Regulation to build understanding of potential implications of climate change for financial institutions
- OCC:
- Paused publication of its fair access rule
- CFPB:
- Outlined the priorities and focus of the CFPB under the new Administration, including COVID-19 relief and racial equity
- Published a research brief on balancing savings and debt with findings from “an online experiment”
Capital Markets
- SEC:
- Announced the designation of Commissioner Allison Herren Lee as acting SEC chair
- Released a statement on FRB’s proposed collection of U.S. Treasury transaction data
- Released a statement on the European Commission adoption of an equivalence decision related to SEC regulatory framework for central counterparties
- Announced the designation of Commissioner Allison Herren Lee as acting SEC chair
- CFTC:
- Announced the election of Commissioner Rostin Benham to serve as acting CFTC chairman
- Announced the election of Commissioner Rostin Benham to serve as acting CFTC chairman
- FINRA:
- Proposed a rule change to the Private Placement Filer form
- Released a podcast about digitalization related to Form U4 and FINRA Gateway
- Updated its guidance on OATS exchange routes matching to the related order on the Members Equity Exchange
Other
- White House:
- Issued Executive Orders impacting fair housing and climate; supporting statements from HUD and the House Financial Services committee
- U.S. Treasury:
- Announced the confirmation of Janet Yellen to serve as Secretary of the Treasury
- FinCEN:
- Extended the reopened comment period for the proposed rulemaking on CVC and digital asset transactions
- SBA:
- Took steps to improve the First Draw PPP loan review process
- BIS:
- Proposed amendments to rules on haircut floors for securities financing transactions
- Launched a second green bond fund for central banks
- Outlined its 2021 work program priorities including suptech/regtech and CBDCs
Industry news headlines
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- Bank of America, KPMG, Mastercard, and some 60 other top companies adopt new ESG metrics (Business Insider)
- Racial equity is a crucial measure of a rule's effectiveness (American Banker)
- Signs point to more bank-nonbank M&A in 2021 (American Banker)
- Biden's OCC expected to chart new course for fintechs, crypto, AML (American Banker)
- How open banking can transform the U.S. payments market (American Banker)
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, muzzled under Trump, prepares to renew tough industry oversight (Washington Post)
- U.S. says $35 billion more in pandemic loans approved, trying to fix program snags (Reuters)
- Biggest U.S. banks embrace ‘Rooney Rule’ policies in diversity hiring push (WSJ)
- Biden regulatory freeze affects some proposed Anti-Money-Laundering rules (WSJ)
