Financial Industry Group Picks Lobbyist to Lead Privacy Effort

WASHINGTON - The Financial Services Coordinating Council has named insurance industry lobbyist Allen R. Caskie as executive director of its privacy project.

Starting today,Mr. Caskie will take a leave of absence from his post as chief counsel for federal affairs at the American Council of Life Insurers to run the coordinating council's privacy watchdog effort. His chief tasks are coordinating the industry's response to privacy legislation brewing in various states, and to regulators as they write rules implementing confidentiality safeguards included in the new financial reform law.

Mr. Caskie said the industry wants to strike a balance between "the legitimate privacy demands" of consumers with the "need to conduct business" and provide better services. Sources said Monday that regulators might start issuing their privacy proposals this week.

The council's members include the ACLI, the American Bankers Association, the American Insurance Association, the Investment Company Institute, and the Securities Industry Association.

--Dean Anason

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