U.S. Financial Regulatory Week Ahead
Bessent Moves to Take Control of Banking Regulation, SEC Chair-Nominee Atkins and Comptroller-Nominee Gould Get Their Confirmation Hearing, and Fed Governor Barr Talks Bank Regulation
As my kids used to say when they were little, “Spring has spronged.” Daffodils are popping up all over Washington, and spring energy is showing up on the Trump regulatory agenda. Numerous reports have leaked out that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is drafting recommendations for ways to streamline the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation – likely pushing to merge the two agencies. There is no word on how the Federal Reserve would factor into these plans, but it sets up a possible fight with Congress on the structure of bank regulation overall..
We would note that Semafor reported on all this last week (and, strangely, there was not much of a reaction to the in-depth report). According to the report, Bessent is going to make the recommendations following the Senate confirmation of Luke Pettit as the Treasury Assistant Secretary for Financial Institutions. Pettit would likely run point on the effort.
Pettit’s Senate Banking Committee confirmation hearing is this Thursday, where he, along with SEC Chair-nominee Paul Atkins and Comptroller of the Currency-nominee Jonathan Gould, will face tough questions from Democrats on the committee. Ranking Committee Democrat Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) is primed to go after Atkins in particular, sending a long letter to him this past week asking numerous questions about his business and his policy views. It should be quite an interesting hearing.
Finally, we were interested to see former Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michael Barr – who stepped down from the role two weeks ago and is now “just” a Fed Governor – speaking g on bank regulation policy this coming week at the Banking Institute. Barr clearly is going to keep a strong focus on the issue, and it will be interesting to watch his role evolve as fellow Fed Governor Michelle Bowman gets ready for confirmation hearings to replace him as Vice Chair for Supervision. In some ways, this is just a reversal of roles, as Bowman was a frequent speaker and commentator (and critic) of bank regulatory policy under Barr.
There are several interesting think tank and trade association events this week, along with five separate hearings in the House of Representatives looking at a variety of regulatory issues. Below is what else we are watching in the Washington financial regulatory world this coming week:
U.S. Congressional Hearings
U.S. Senate
· Tuesday, March 25, 10:00 a.m. – The Senate Finance Committee holds a hearing on the nomination of Frank Bisignano as commissioner of the Social Security Administration.
· Thursday, March 27, 10:00 a.m. – The Senate Banking Committee will hold the confirmation hearing for Paul Atkins for Chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission, Jonathan Gould to be Comptroller of the Currency, and Luke Pettit to the Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Financial Institutions.
House of Representatives
· Tuesday, March 25, 10:00 a.m. – The House Financial Services Committee holds a hearing on "Beyond Silicon Valley: Expanding Access to Capital Across America."
· Tuesday, March 25, 10:00 a.m. – The House Agriculture Committee holds a hearing on "The CFTC (Commodity Futures Trading Commission) at 50: Examining the Past and Future of Commodity Markets."
· Wednesday, March 26, 10:00 a.m. – The House Financial Services Committee’s Financial Institutions Subcommittee holds a hearing on "A New Era for the CFPB (Consumer Financial Protection Bureau): Balancing Power and Reprioritizing Consumer Protections."
· Wednesday, March 26, 10:00 a.m. – The House Small Business Committee holds a hearing on "The Golden Age: Unleashing Main Street Through Deregulation."
· Wednesday, March 26, 2:00 p.m. – The House Financial Services Committee’s National Security, Illicit Finance, and International Financial Institutions Subcommittee hearing on "Following the Money: Tools and Techniques to Combat Fraud
Federal Department & Regulatory Agency Meetings & Events
Federal Reserve Board and Federal Reserve Banks
· Monday, March 24, 3:10 p.m. – Federal Reserve Board Governor Michael S. Barr gives a speech on Small Business Lending at the Advancing Innovation and Fairness in Small Business Finance, Washington, D.C.
· Tuesday, March 25, 8:40 a.m. – Federal Reserve Board Governor Adriana D. Kugler gives a speech on the Economic Landscape and Entrepreneurship at the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce 2025 Legislative Summit, Washington D.C.
· Friday, March 28, 12:15 p.m. – Federal Reserve Board Governor Michael S. Barr participates in a discussion on banking policy at the 2025 Banking Institute, Charlotte, North Carolina.
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.
Securities and Exchange Commission
· Monday, March 24, 9:10 a.m. – Acting SEC Chair Mark Uyeda speaks at the SIFMA C&L 2025 Annual Seminar in Austin, Texas.
· Thursday, March 27, 9:00 a.m. – The Securities and Exchange Commission holds a discussion on "Artificial Intelligence in the Financial Industry." Acting SEC Chairman Mark Uyeda, SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce, and SEC Commissioner Caroline Crenshaw will participate.
· Thursday, March 27, 2:00 p.m. – The SEC holds a Closed Meeting.
Commodities Futures Trading Commission
· Monday, March 24, 1:40 p.m. – CFTC Commissioner Kristin N. Johnson will deliver a keynote address at the SIFMA C&L 2025 Annual Seminar Women’s Luncheon in Austin, Texas.
· Wednesday, March 26, 12:00 p.m. (GMT) – CFTC Commissioner Christy Goldsmith Romero will participate in a policy roundtable convened by the International Swaps and Derivatives Association in London.
· Wednesday, March 26, 9:50 a.m. – CFTC Commissioner Summer K. Mersinger will participate in the Crypto, Derivatives, and the Road Ahead: A Conversation with the CFTC and NFA panel at the Digital Chamber’s DC Blockchain Summit in Washington, D.C.
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
· There are no significant events scheduled at this time.
Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
· Monday, March 24, 3:40 p.m. – Acting Comptroller of the Currency Rodney E. Hood will discuss financial inclusion at the Homeownership and Housing Policy Conference hosted by the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals in Washington, D.C.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
· There are no significant events scheduled at this time.
National Credit Union Administration
· There are no significant events scheduled at this time.
FINRA
· There are no significant events scheduled at this time.
Federal Housing Finance Agency
· There are no significant events scheduled at this time.
Federal Trade Commission & Department of Justice Antitrust Division
· There are no significant events scheduled at this time.
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.
Small Business Administration
· 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.
Trade Associations & Think Tank Events
Trade Associations
· March 23 -26 – SIFMA holds its C&L 2025 Annual Seminar is being held in Austin, Texas.
· The Digital Chamber’s Blockchain Summit will be held in Washington, D.C. Senate Banking Committee Chair Tim Scott (R-SC) and House Financial Services Committee Chair French Hill (R-AK) will speak.
Think Tanks and Other Events
· Tuesday, March 25, 1:00 p.m. – The Urban Institute holds a discussion on "Improving Household Financial Security and Upward Mobility: Insights for Effective Policy and Practice."
Recommended Reads
Trump’s ‘Strategic Bitcoin Reserve’ Makes No Sense The CATO Institute
Bitcoin, the pioneer free-market digital asset, which was originally supposed to function beyond governments’ reach, is now being boosted by at least one of the governments it was supposed to defy: ours. When bitcoin was invented in 2008, its anonymous (but certainly libertarian) inventors hoped it would rival official currencies, especially the US dollar. Instead of being regulated by governments, the quantity of bitcoin would be controlled by a decentralized and tamper-proof computer program, or “protocol,” set to have it gradually approach a limit of 21 million coins. By guaranteeing bitcoins’ scarcity, the protocol would make them an attractive alternative to monies that governments can print to their hearts’ content, which tend to depreciate for that reason.