John Heltman is the Washington Bureau Chief for American Banker. John previously edited American Banker Magazine and is the creator of American Banker's narrative podcast Bankshot. He was awarded the Grand Neal, the top honor bestowed by the Jesse H. Neal Awards, in 2019 for his narrative podcast series Nobody’s Home, which examines the economic and social impact of concentrated vacant housing. He was also named the 2019 McAllister Editorial Fellow at Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. He is a 2005 graduate of St. Mary’s College of Maryland and lives in Baltimore, Md.
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Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Rohit Chopra's decision to withhold support of a reworked Basel III endgame capital proposal is logical as a way to gain leverage in this and future rule negotiations but may ultimately not amount to much.
September 24 -
Vice President and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris' pitch for an "opportunity economy" is a sound political and economic vision. But banks must be a partner in making that vision into a reality.
September 17 -
In his reset of the Basel III endgame proposal outlined Tuesday, Federal Reserve Vice Chair of Supervision Michael Barr deemphasized the connection between last year's bank failures and raising capital. That makes a world of sense.
September 10 -
The Federal Reserve's independence in setting monetary policy is critical to global confidence in U.S. markets and the dollar's status as reserve currency of choice. Making those functions constitutionally separate from the executive branch is the best way to ensure that independence.
September 3 -
Vice President Kamala Harris has pledged to build 3 million new housing units over her first term. Rehabilitating vacant housing might be one of the most cost-effective ways to meet that goal — and address many other problems at the same time.
August 27 -
The new president will shape the direction of banking policy, but because financial regulators are more insulated from politics than many other areas, that transition will be gradual.
August 20 -
Keeping control of the Senate in 2024 was always a tall order for Democrats. Republicans thus far are on track to eke out a narrow majority — an outcome that would limit a prospective Harris administration's maneuverability in nominations and legislation.
August 13 -
Instances of check fraud have ballooned in recent years, plaguing banks, and they don't seem to be slowing down. Probably the best thing regulators can do to combat that fraud is to develop an equally inexpensive alternative that is more secure, and FedNow might be that service.
July 30 -
Vice President Kamala Harris has kept a low profile in banking policy, and there is a reasonable expectation that her administration would pick up where Biden left off. But if she wanted to, Harris could reset Democrats' financial policy agenda.
July 23 -
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's term expires in 2026, and the chances are good that he will ride off into the sunset. But there is a path for him to be renominated for a third term, and he's defied long political odds before.
July 16
