Randal Quarles

Capital requirements

Fed’s Quarles casts doubt on permanent capital relief for big banks

Regulators in the spring temporarily eased a key benchmark of balance-sheet strength to allow institutions to help customers navigate the pandemic, but Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Randal Quarles said it would be “premature” right now to suspend it for good.

By Hannah Lang

October 14

"I understand the desire to give thought to it but I would think it'd be premature to say that we ought to make that permanent currently,” said Fed Vice Chairman Randal Quarles.

Stress tests

Fed offers details on additional bank stress test triggered by COVID-19

The agency has scheduled an extra assessment of institutions' strength to incorporate more recent economic data during the pandemic.

By Hannah Lang

September 17

“The Fed’s stress tests earlier this year showed the strength of large banks under many different scenarios,” Vice Chair for Supervision Randal Quarles said. “Although the economy has improved materially over the last quarter, uncertainty over the course of the next few quarters remains unusually high, and these two additional tests will provide more information on the resiliency of large banks.”

Nonbank

Shadow bank weaknesses forced Fed's market rescue, Quarles says

A top Federal Reserve official is issuing a warning about fast-growing and largely unregulated shadow lenders: They were a big factor in why central banks had to save markets earlier this year, and much more needs to be done to assess the risks posed by the sector.

July 15

Randal Quarles, vice chairman of supervision at the Federal Reserve, speaks during the American Bar Association Banking Law Committee annual meeting in Washington on Jan. 17, 2020.

Living wills

Fed's Quarles urges nations to strengthen bank resolution plans

Randal Quarles, who is also chairman of the Financial Stability Board, said FSB members must do more to prepare for bank failures.

By Hannah Lang

July 7

“The benefits of reforms cannot be realized unless they are operationalized,” said Fed Vice Chairman Randal Quarles, who chairs the Financial Stability Board.

Stress tests

Fed should make banks stop paying dividends, Senate Democrats say

The lawmakers argued in a letter to the Federal Reserve that suspending dividend payouts would be the "prudent course of action," allowing banks to build their capital cushions and continue lending during the coronavirus pandemic.

By Neil Haggerty

June 24

Sen. Brian Schatz of Hawaii is among the Democratic senators urging the Fed to implement "across-the-board" dividend suspensions at banks it regulates.

Morning scan

The Fed's move to tweak bank stress tests; Wirecard CEO quits as money hunt continues

Big banks will need to show how well they can withstand three different scenarios before they can pay dividends; the German payments company is still looking for $2 billion of missing funds.

By George Yacik

June 22

Fed Vice Chairman for Supervision Randal Quarles

Stress tests

Banks’ dividend payouts could hinge on COVID-19 stress tests: Quarles

The senior official said the Federal Reserve’s gauge of a firm’s performance under economic recovery scenarios will affect decisions about its capital distribution, but individual results of the analysis will not be made public.

By Hannah Lang

June 19

“The sensitivity analysis will help us judge whether banks would have enough capital if economic and financial conditions were to worsen,” said Fed Vice Chair Randal Quarles.

Federal Reserve

How coronavirus could alter Fed’s thinking about stress tests

The general structure of this year’s reviews is unchanged despite the pandemic. But a supplemental analysis of banks' response to the downturn could weigh heavily in evaluating 2020 capital distributions and making adjustments to the tests over the long run.

By Hannah Lang

May 28

CRA

Democrats lay into OCC chief for pushing ahead with CRA rule

At a Senate hearing with all the bank regulators, Joseph Otting got an earful over his agency’s decision to move forward with Community Reinvestment Act reform during the pandemic. Lawmakers also urged the Fed to speed up the rollout of coronavirus relief programs.

By Neil Haggerty

May 12

The OCC "is marching ahead with its plan to dismantle a civil rights-era law that requires banks to actually serve the communities where they do business, including low- and moderate-income communities,” said Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio.

Regulatory relief

Global regulators pledge further relief for banks in midst of crisis

The Financial Stability Board said it stood ready to coordinate additional help on capital requirements, upcoming regulatory deadlines and other standards.

April 15