U.S. Financial Regulatory Week Ahead
The CFPB Orders the Supervision of Google, Paul Atkins Nominated for SEC Chair, the FSOC Meets One Last Time in 2024, and Treasury Gets Ready to Hold the 2024 Outbound Investment Security Conference
December 9 - 13, 2024
The Trump Transition keeps racing ahead as President-elect Trump made multiple nominations in the last week (by historical comparison, Trump is moving close to five times faster nominating his team than President Biden did in 2020, and four times faster than President Obama did in 2009). And the President-elect made his first major regulatory nomination by choosing Paul Atkins to serve as Chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission – a move cheered by the markets and a number of members of Congress from both sides of the aisle (full disclosure: Paul has been a friend for 30 years going back to when we served at the SEC together in the early 1990s).
Meanwhile, while most regulatory agencies are winding down their activities, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) seems to be ramping up its work. On Friday, the CFPB placed Google Payment Corporation under its supervisory authority – a designation puts the tech company on the level of monitoring and oversight that banks do. Google is going to fight the designation – stand by because this is going to become a major battle in Washington in 2025.
Also this past week, the Financial Stability Oversight Council met (once again not giving any public notice in advance). The agenda, according to a readout press release, included:
“an update from Treasury and Federal Reserve Bank of New York staff on recent hedge fund market developments, including the recent growth of overall leverage across the industry. Staff also described regulators’ efforts to improve counterparty credit risk management practices at supervised institutions that provide financing to hedge funds, and presented on potential policy responses to mitigate identified risks.
The Council also received a presentation from staff of Treasury, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System on developments in the life insurance sector, including affiliations with offshore reinsurers and private equity firms, and regulators’ ongoing efforts to enhance the sector’s resilience.
In addition, the Council received an update from member agency staff and a Ginnie Mae senior official on how vulnerabilities in the nonbank mortgage servicing sector have evolved since the Council issued its Report on Nonbank Mortgage Servicing in May 2024. Staff also described efforts by states and federal agencies to implement the recommendations in the Council’s report.”
Finally, we would note that this coming week the Treasury Department will be holding its 2024 Outbound Investment Security Conference. The event will allow Treasury officials along with State Department officials to discuss the newly created regulatory regime for outbound investment in critical industries.
Below are all the other events of note happing 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 11, 9:45 a.m. – The Senate Banking Committee will hold a hearing entitled “Consumer Protection: Protecting Workers’ Money and Fighting for the Dignity of Work.” Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Rohit Chopra will testify.
- The Committee will also go into executive session and vote on the nominations of Caroline Crenshaw to be re-confirmed as an SEC Commissioner and Gordon Ito to be a member of the Financial Stability Oversight Council.
· Wednesday, December 11, 10:00 a.m. – The Senate Budget Committee will hold a hearing entitled “Sounding the Alarm: Pathways and Possible Solutions to the U.S. Fiscal Crisis."
House of Representatives
· There are no significant events scheduled at this time.
Federal Department & Regulatory Agency Meetings & Events
Federal Reserve Board and Federal Reserve Banks
· There are no Federal Reserve Board Governor speeches or events scheduled as the Fed goes into its “Quiet Period” in advance of the December 18-19 Federal Open Market Committee meeting.
U.S. Treasury Department
· Monday, December 9, 1:00 p.m. – The Treasury Department will hold the 2024 Outbound Investment Security Conference.
· Thursday, December 12, 9:00 a.m. – the Treasury Department’s Federal Advisory Committee on Insurance will meet virtually. The agenda includes Climate-related financial risk and the insurance sector, Cyber insurance developments and international insurance issues, Receiving status updates from each of its subcommittees and from FIO on its activities.
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
· Monday, December 9, 9:00 a.m. – SEC Commissioner Mark Uyeda will speak at the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) annual conference on current SEC and PCOAB Developments in Washington, D.C.
· Tuesday, December 10, 10:00 a.m. – SEC Investor Advisory Committee meets. You can see the full agenda HERE.
· Wednesday, December 11 – SEC Commissioner Hester Pierce will give a speech at the Competitive Enterprise Institute annual summit entitled “Woke Capital and ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance)”
· Thursday, December 12, 2:00 p.m. – The SEC will hold a Closed Meeting.
Commodities Futures Trading Commission
· Monday, December 9, 1:55 p.m. – CFTC Commissioner Summer K. Mersinger and SEC Commissioner Mark T. Uyeda will participate in the Financial Regulators Leading in the Digital Age fireside chat at Wharton’s Future of Finance Forum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
· Tuesday, December 10, 9:30 a.m. – The CFTC Market Risk Advisory Committee will meet. You can see the full agenda HERE.
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
· 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 Wagner Labor Initiative in New York.
· Thursday, December 12, 10:00 a.m. – the Board of the Farm Credit Administration meets. The scheduled agenda will cover the Quarterly Report on Economic Conditions and Farm Credit System Condition and Performance as well as the Semiannual Report on Office of Examination Operations.
Farm Credit Insurance Corporation
· Wednesday, December 11, 10:00 a.m. – the Board of Directors of the Farm Credit System Insurance Corporation will meet.
International Monetary Fund & World Bank
· Wednesday, November 11, 9:00 a.m. – International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva delivers keynote remarks at the Reuters Next Summit.
North American Securities Administrators Association
· There are no significant events scheduled at this time.
Trade Associations & Think Tank Events
Trade Associations
· Monday, December 9, 9:00 a.m. – The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) holds its annual conference. SEC Commissioner Mark Uyeda will speak.
· Monday, December 9, 10:00 a.m. – The Institute of International Finance holds a joint international bank regulation colloquium with the Bank Policy Institute (BPI) in New York (by invitation only).
Think Tanks and Other Events
· Wednesday, December 11 – The Competitive Enterprise Institute holds its annual summit. SEC Commissioner Hester Pierce will deliver remarks entitled “Woke Capital and ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance)”
· Wednesday, December 11, 9:00 a.m. – The Peterson Institute for International Economics will hold a event entitled “Bpifrance's experience of promoting high-growth firms” (Bpifrance is a French government-owned promotional bank that was established in 2012 to support the development of high-growth French firms.)
· Wednesday, December 11, 1:00 p.m. – The Peterson Institute for International Economics holds a book launch event entitled “The Central Bank as Crisis Manager”
· Thursday, December 12, 9:00 a.m. – The Farm Foundation holds a virtual forum, beginning at 9 a.m., on "Tax Year 2025: Potential Impacts and Opportunities for Farmers and the Agriculture Sector."
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