U.S. Regulatory Week Ahead
Is SEC Chair Gensler Stepping Down Next Week? The Senate Judiciary Committee Finally Holds a Hearing on Visa/Mastercard, and the House Financial Services Committee Hauls Up All the Prudential Regulators for One Last Hearing
November 18 - 22, 2024
The Trump Transition is off to a record pace of naming new cabinet secretaries and senior White House staff, but no financial regulator has been named yet. We would note that the closest to a regulator being named was the surprise announcement that former SEC Chair Jay Clayton is being nominated as the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York—the U.S. Prosecutor with the most oversight of Wall Street.
But it appears the first of the sitting financial regulators is getting ready to go. SEC Chair Gary Gensler strongly hinted he would submit his resignation letter in the next week or so with a timeline for departing the building in early January. We guess most other regulators will follow suit in the coming weeks.
Meanwhile, Congress is spicing up things in the coming week with two hearings of note. The first is the long-awaited/much-delayed Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the “duopoly” of Visa and Mastercard. Senate Judiciary Committee Dick Durbin (D-IL) has been trying to schedule this hearing for the better part of the year and now is getting his wish with only a few weeks left in this Congress. As of Sunday afternoon, there are no announced witnesses yet, which suggests to us there is still a tug-of-war going on between the Committee and Visa and Mastercard as to who – if anyone – from the two firms will testify.
We note that this hearing will likely have some bearing on the pending Capitol One/Discovery merger and be mentioned frequently in the hearing, as proponents of the deal argue that approving the merger will help break up that supposed “duopoly.”
Also, this coming week, the House Financial Services Committee is holding an oversight hearing, which is supposed to include all the prudential regulators. While no witnesses are listed for this hearing, either, our guess is Federal Reserve Vice Chair Michael Barr, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency Michael Hsu, and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Chair Marty Gruenberg would be most likely the witnesses – but the question is: will Gruenberg show? He’s been dodging the committee since the independent report was released, showing his culpability in allowing and even contributing to a highly abusive workplace at the FDIC. And he claims he will step down when the Senate confirms a replacement. But at this point, we do not see the nominee, Christy Goldsmith Romero, getting confirmed, and we will likely have to wait until President-elect Trump nominates someone – which could be months away.
Below are all the other major regulatory events we are tracking in the coming week. Please let us know if you have any questions.
U.S. Congressional Hearings
U.S. Senate
· Tuesday, November 19, 10:00 a.m. – The Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing on "Breaking the Visa-Mastercard Duopoly: Bringing Competition and Lower Fees to the Credit Card System."
· Wednesday, November 20, 2:00 p.m. – The Senate Banking Committee’s Economic Subcommittee will hold a hearing entitled “Tax Policy in 2025: Implications for the American Economy.”
House of Representatives
· Wednesday, November 20, 10:00 a.m. – The House Financial Services Committee will hold a hearing entitled “Oversight of Prudential Regulators.”
Joint Committees
Tuesday, November 19, 2:30 p.m. – The Joint Economic Committee holds a hearing on "Building on the Success of TCJA (Tax Cuts and Jobs Act): The 2025 Tax Policy Debate."
Federal Department & Regulatory Agency Meetings & Events
Federal Reserve Board and Federal Reserve Banks
· Wednesday, November 20, 11:00 a.m. – Federal Reserve Board Governor Lisa D. Cook gives a speech entitled “Economic Outlook and Monetary Policy” at the UVA Economics Presents: A Conversation with Federal Reserve Board Governor Lisa D. Cook and Dean Christa Acampora, Charlottesville, Virginia.
· Wednesday, November 20, 12:15 p.m. – Federal Reserve Board Governor Michelle W. Bowman gives a speech entitled “Approach to Agency Policymaking” at The Forum Club of the Palm Beaches, West Palm Beach, Florida.
· Thursday, November 21, 4:40 p.m. – Federal Reserve Board Vice Chair for Supervision Michael Barr will give a speech on “Banks and Artificial Intelligence” at the 2024 FinRegLab AI Symposium in Washington, D.C.
· Friday, November 22, 6:15 pm. – Federal Reserve Board Governor Michelle Bowman gives a speech on Artificial Intelligence at the 27th Annual Symposium on Building the Financial System of the 21st Century in Washington, D.C.
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
· Wednesday, November 20, 11:00 a.m. – The SEC, along with the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB), and FINRA holds a Joint Compliance Outreach Program for Municipal Market Participants. The event is being held both virtually and in person in Denver, Colorado.
· Thursday, November 21, 2:00 p.m. – The SEC holds a Closed Meeting.
Commodities Futures Trading Commission
· Tuesday, November 19, 9:30 a.m. CT – Chairman Rostin Behnam will give a keynote address and fireside chat at FIA’s Futures & Options Expo in Chicago, Illinois.
· Tuesday, November 20, 1:40 p.m. CT – Commissioner Kristin N. Johnson will speak on a panel titled “Impact of Technology and Modernization of Clearing” at the Futures Industry Association (FIA) Futures & Options Expo 2024 in Chicago, Illinois.
· Wednesday, November 20, 2:00 p.m. CT – Commissioner Caroline D. Pham will speak on a panel titled “24/7 Trading: Are We Ready?” at the Futures Industry Association (FIA) Futures & Options Expo 2024 in Chicago, Illinois.
· Thursday, November 21, 9:30 a.m. – The CFTC’s Global Markets Advisory Committee will meet. The meeting will be open to the public via live webcast or listen-only audio feed via telephone. You can find the agenda HERE.
· Thursday, November 21, 4:20 p.m. – CFTC Chairman Rostin Behnam will participate in a fireside chat at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.
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
· Thursday, November 21, 10:00 a.m. – The Board of the NCUA will hold a meeting.
· Friday, November 22, 10:00 a.m. – The NCUA holds a Public Budget Briefing.
Federal Trade Commission & Department of Justice Antitrust Division
· Monday, November 18, 5:30 p.m. – FTC Commissioner Alvaro Bedoya will give a speech entitled “The FTC and Worker Surveillance” at the New York University
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.
Trade Associations & Think Tank Events
Trade Associations
· Monday – Thursday, November 18 – 20 – The Futures Industry Association holds its 2024 Expo in Chicago, Illinois.
· Tuesday, November 19, 2:00 p.m. – SIFMA will hold a virtual Industry Briefing on the U.S. Treasury Clearing Report.
· Thursday, November 21, 11:00 a.m. – The Institute for International Finance will hold an online event entitled “Artificial Intelligence in Latin America and the Caribbean.” The event will be held in Spanish.
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Think Tanks and Other Events
· Tuesday, November 19, 9:15 a.m. – The Brookings Institution will hold a event entitled “What will tax policy look like in the new Trump administration?” in Washington, D.C.
· Tuesday, November 19, 1:00 p.m. – The Bipartisan Policy Center holds a virtual discussion, beginning at 1 p.m., on "Preservation: An Essential Response to the Housing Affordability Challenge."
· Wednesday & Thursday, November 20 – 21 – The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research holds its 13th annual Housing Center Conference, November 20-21.
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