U.S. Financial Regulatory Week Ahead

Written By Francis Kelly

A New Chair of the House Financial Services Committee, The CFPB’s Says He’s Not Leaving, the Blockchain Association’s Powerhouse Policy Summit, And Are We Getting Ready to Spin Out the GSEs?

December 16 - 20, 2024

We are a little more than a week away from the two-week holiday break (the ultimate quiet time in Washington), but things remain busy as regulators and Congress prepare to hit the ground running in 2025.

Last week, we saw the final pieces of the Congressional puzzle fall into place with the election of Congressman French Hill (R-AK) as the new chair of the House Financial Services Committee.  Hill, a former banker and the crypto expert, has said his first priority will be on the regulatory burden community banks and "the misdirected oversight and the regulatory priorities of the SEC," as well as finding a way to craft a market structure bill for digital assets.

Hill, who is known to have an excellent relationship with incoming Senate Banking Committee Chair Tim Scott (R-SC), also spoke last week about the need to end the conservatorship of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, an issue which seems to be suddenly gaining steam (we would note the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) releasing a letter and report released a letter and report last week saying improved finances at the two mortgage giants have improved considerably, making them likely more attractive to investors and for the government to sell its stake in the companies.  The incoming "Department of Government Efficiency" (DOGE), headed by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, will likely consider spinning out Freddie and Fannie as among their recommendations to restructure the federal government. 

Also last week, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Director Rohit Chopra said at a Senate Banking Committee hearing that he is not planning to step down when President Trump takes office in January.  He acknowledged that the President can remove him, but for now, he will wait and see what happens.  (Our view?  Chopra will get fired on day one.) 

Chopra also keeps churning out new regulations.  Last week, the CFPB released a final rule restricting banks' overdraft fee charges for customers with insufficient funds.  The rule caps overdrafts at $5.  As you might imagine, banks are unhappy with the rule.

Looking forward to what is happening this week, the Blockchain Association is holding its annual policy summit in Washington.  The list of speakers is, quite frankly, quite impressive by trade association standards and shows the rapidly increasing power of blockchain and crypto in Washington.  Both the chair of the Senate Banking Committee and House Financial Services Committee are speaking along with eight additional senators and members of Congress, two SEC Commissioners, one CFTC commissioner, a number of senior Treasury and IRS officials, and the CEOs of virtually all the major blockchain companies.

Below are all the other noteworthy events in the financial regulatory world in the coming week.  Please let us know if you have any questions.

U.S. Congressional Hearings

 

U.S. Senate

·       Wednesday, December 18, 10:00 a.m. – The Senate Budget Committee holds a hearing on "Next to the Fall: The Climate-Driven Insurance Crisis is Here And Getting Worse.".

 

House of Representatives

·       There are no significant events scheduled at this time.

 

Congressional Joint Committees

·       Wednesday, December 18, 2:30 p.m. – The Joint Economic Committee holds a hearing entitled “Trade Wars & Higher Costs: The Case Against Trump’s Tariffs”

 

 

Federal Department & Regulatory Agency Meetings & Events

Federal Reserve Board and Federal Reserve Banks

  • December 18-19 – The Federal Reserve Board’s Federal Open Market Committee meets to discuss the economy and interest rates. Federal Reserve Board Chair Jay Powell will hold a press conference on Thursday at 2:00 p.m.

    U.S. Treasury Department

  • There are no significant events scheduled at this time.

Department of Commerce

  • There are no significant events scheduled at this time.

Department of Housing and Urban Development

  • There are no significant events scheduled at this time.

Small Business Administration

  • There are no significant events scheduled at this time.

Securities and Exchange Commission

  • Tuesday, December 17, 1:00 p.m. – SEC Commissioners Hester Peirce and Mark Uyeda will participate on a panel discussion entitled “View from the SEC” at the Blockchain Association Policy Summit in Washington, D.C.

  • Wednesday, December 18, 10:00 a.m. – The SEC will hold an Open Meeting.  They will consider the 2025 Final Budget and Accounting Support Fee for the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board whether to approve the 2025 Final Budget and Accounting Support Fee for the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board.

  • Thursday, December 19, 2:00 p.m. – The SEC will hold a Closed Meeting.

 Commodities Futures Trading Commission

  • Tuesday, December 17, 1:35 p.m. – CFTC Commissioner Summer K. Mersinger will participate in the “View from the CFTC” fireside chat at the Blockchain Association Policy Summit.

 

  • Wednesday, December 18 9:30 a.m. – The CFTC will hold an Open Meeting.  They will consider two items: 1) The Final Rule on Real-Time Public Reporting Requirements and Swap Data Recordkeeping and Reporting Requirements and 2) The Final Rule on Regulations to Address Margin Adequacy and to Account for the Treatment of Separate Accounts by Futures Commission Merchants.

 

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation

  • There are no significant events scheduled at this time.

 

Office of the Comptroller of the Currency

  • There are no significant events scheduled at this time.

 

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

  • There are no significant events scheduled at this time.

 

FINRA

  • There are no significant events scheduled at this time.

 

National Credit Union Administration

  • Tuesday, December 17, 10:00 a.m. – The NCUA Board will hold a board meeting. They will consider two items: 1) NCUA’s 2024-2026 Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Strategic Plan, and 2) the NCUA’s 2024 Annual Performance Plan.

 

Federal Trade Commission & Department of Justice Antitrust Division

 

Farm Credit Administration

  • There are no significant events scheduled at this time.

 

Farm Credit Insurance Corporation

  • There are no significant events scheduled at this time.

 

International Monetary Fund & World Bank

  • There are no significant events scheduled at this time.

 

North American Securities Administrators Association

  • There are no significant events scheduled at this time.

Think Tanks and Other Events

Trade Associations

  • Monday – Tuesday, December 16-17, the Blockchain Association holds its annual policy summit.  Speakers include incoming Senate Banking Committee Chair Senator Tim Scott (R-SC), incoming House Financial Services Committee Chair French Hill (R-AR), SEC Commissioners Hester Peirce and Mark Uyeda, CFTC Commissioner Summer Mersinger, and anumber of other members of Congress and the Biden Administration.

 

Think Tanks and Other Events

Please let us know if you have any questions or want to be added to our email distribution list.

Francis Kelly
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