Banking Politics & Policy News
American Banker's Politics & Policy coverage delivers news and analysis on how legislative action, federal agency rulemaking, regulatory politics, and public policy debates shape banking strategy, risk, competition, and compliance. Coverage explores congressional priorities, executive branch initiatives, regulatory agency actions, and the political forces that shape and impact the operating environment for financial institutions, payments companies, fintechs and distributed finance companies.
Bank leaders must navigate a dynamic policy environment where congressional action, regulatory priorities, and political forces influence capital standards, supervisory expectations, digital asset frameworks, deposit insurance, consumer rules, and competitive dynamics.
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The Federal Housing Finance Agency issued guidance to ensure the Federal Home Loan banks are lending based on the credit worthiness of the member bank, not solely on the quality of the collateral.
September 27
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Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom signed measures designed to bolster consumer protection rules. The bills target several issues that have also been percolating at the federal level.
September 26
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Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., told the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Reserve that they should more carefully oversee New York Community Bancorp, and consider official measures like raising capital ratios for the bank.
September 26
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A Democratic-backed bill that represents the most sweeping response yet to the problem of gambling addiction would ban the use of credit cards in sports gambling.
September 25
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Lawmakers on the House Financial Services Committee touched on a number of issues overlapping with banking and the Securities and Exchange Commission, including SAB 121 and stablecoin legislation.
September 24
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Federal Reserve Gov. Michelle Bowman said a lack of banking experience among regulatory officials has led to unintended consequences. She flagged mergers, fintech partnerships and liquidity proposals as prime examples.
September 24
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While other Washington regulators revise their approaches to merger reviews, the Federal Reserve has made no official change to its framework. The $35 billion merger could demonstrate just how differently the central bank is approaching the issue — if at all.
September 23
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As stablecoins and other cryptocurrencies enter the mainstream, lawmakers in Illinois have imposed a new transaction tax on digital assets. It will raise costs for everyday consumers and drive away businesses.
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Yes, banks' capital burden will decline, leaving more potential funds available for lending. But the big question is which banks will find a way to deploy those funds to generate meaningful returns.
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Restrictions that limit access to private market investments are harmful to ordinary investors, who are denied better returns. They also seal off a large potential source of funding for long-term infrastructure investments.
