Brendan Pedersen covered Capitol Hill and regulatory politics for American Banker until September 2022. From 2019-2021, he covered the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency as well as fintech policy. Originally from Chicagoland, he was previously a staff writer for Kiplinger's Personal Finance and covered local business affairs in Denver, Colorado for BusinessDen.
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Fed Gov. Lael Brainard, President Biden's nominee for Federal Reserve vice chair, sought to assure GOP members of the Senate Banking Committee she favors a more limited supervisory approach that would help larger banks identify pockets of risk in their loan portfolios.
January 13 -
Jerome Powell sought to strike a political balance at his reconfirmation hearing. He assured Republicans the Federal Reserve wouldn't overstep its authority on bank mergers and other matters, while telling Democrats the central bank has a responsibility to monitor financial stability and the risks of climate change.
January 11 -
Last reelected by a more than 21-point margin, Ed Perlmutter is now 26th House Democrat to leave Congress rather than endure the 2022 midterms.
January 10 -
After Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chair Jelena McWilliams’ resignation, a Democrat on the board will temporarily run the agency. But it's still unclear who will call the shots over the long run and how policymaking will be affected by the FDIC's leftward shift.
January 4 -
Democrats largely left the financial sector alone last year. But they are attempting to resurrect a bank tax-reporting plan to help pay for President Biden’s social policy package while keeping a close eye on cryptocurrency and how regulators review mergers.
January 3 -
The Trump-appointed head of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., Jelena McWilliams, said she plans to leave the agency in early February. The announcement comes weeks after Democratic appointees making up a majority of the board had threatened her leadership by acting on policy related to bank mergers without her consent.
December 31 -
Biden administration appointees moved quickly to highlight climate change risks and unwind Trump-era regulatory relief and housing finance measures. These regulators and lawmakers will have a seat at the table as the progressive shift in banking policy continues.
December 29 -
Maxine Waters, the House Financial Services Committee chair, is questioning Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. chief Jelena McWilliams's claim that board Democrats' request for comment on merger policy was invalid without her support.
December 22 -
With the Biden administration suffering setbacks in trying to appoint a Senate-confirmed leader at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, acting Comptroller Michael Hsu could emerge as the consensus choice, observers said.
December 21 -
Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter praised Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Rohit Chopra “for his leadership" on bank merger issues. Chopra and two other Democratic board members at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. are locked in a battle with Chair Jelena McWilliams over the agency’s own merger policy.
December 17
