Posted on March 15, 2010 by Hunton & Williams LLP Print This Article

Senate Banking Chairman Releases New Financial Overhaul Draft Bill

Senate Banking Chairman Christopher Dodd (D-CT) released a revised draft of his financial overhaul legislation today.  Today's draft bill differs in some regards to the proposed legislative language previously released by Chairman Dodd in November 2009.  Notably, the new language provides for the Federal Reserve to oversee any bank holding company with more than $50 billion in assets and would house a consumer watchdog entity, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, with its own budget and rule making authority within the Federal Reserve.  The revised bill also now provides for large financial institutions to pay into an upfront $50 billion fund that would be used to liquidate a failing institution.  Although the new legislation does not automatically implement the so-called Volcker Rule, which places certain restrictions on banks when using their own funds, it does provide for the administration of the Volcker Rule after a study by the nine member Financial Stability Oversight Council, which would be chaired by the Treasury Secretary with other members from the Federal Reserve Board, the SEC, the CFTC, OCC, FDIC, FHFA, and the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

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Posted on March 11, 2010 by Hunton & Williams LLP Print This Article

Sen.Dodd to Release New Financial Regulatory Reform Draft Legislation

Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd (D-CT) announced today that he will release a revised draft of his proposed financial regulatory reform legislation on Monday, March 15, 2010.  Chairman Dodd also indicated he plans to markup the proposed legislation the week of March 22, 2010.  The new draft will be a revision of his original proposal released in November 2009. 

Click here for Chairman Dodd's press release.

Posted on December 11, 2009 by Hunton & Williams LLP Print This Article

House of Representatives Passes Finance Rules Overhaul Bill

The House of Representatives passed the "The Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2009" (HR 4173) today in a vote of 223-202.  The legislation creates the Consumer Financial Protection Agency, a council of regulators tasked with identifying companies that the federal government deems as so interconnected with other large companies that its failure would endanger the U.S. economy as whole, and addresses other financial areas like derivatives, hedge funds, lending practices, and dissolution of failing companies.   The Senate is currently drafting its own bill on the same subject matter.
 
Click here for the House Financial Services Committee's press release, click here for HR 4173, click here for the bill's summary, and click here for the Treasury Department's press release.

Posted on November 10, 2009 by Hunton & Williams LLP Print This Article

Senate Banking Committee Democrats Release Financial Regulatory Overhaul Draft Bill

Today Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd and his Democratic Banking Committee colleagues released draft financial regulatory reform legislation. The new draft legislation comes as the House Financial Services Committee has yet to complete its markup of similar legislation.  Today's released legislation outlines a process for the government to determine which financial companies are more stringently regulated, the regulations to be used and the inner workings with a newly created Agency for Financial Stability.   Additionally, the legislation sets forth a process for winding down such financial companies.  Both the Office of Thrift Supervision and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency would be eliminated under the bill and replaced by a single entity, the Financial Institutions Regulatory Administration.  

Click here for the press release, click here for a summary of the draft legislation and click here for the actual draft legislation.

Posted on October 27, 2009 by Hunton & Williams LLP Print This Article

Treasury Dept. and House Financial Services Committee Release Draft Systemic Risk Bill

Today the Treasury Department and the House Financial Services Committee jointly released draft legislation addressing systemic risk. The new draft legislation comes two days before the House Financial Services Committee is scheduled to hold a hearing on systemic risk, Thursday, October 29, 2009. Today's revised legislation outlines a process for the government to determined which financial companies are more stringently regulated, what regulations will be used and how they will work. Additionally, it sets forth a process for winding down such companies.

Click here for a summary of the draft legislation and press release, and click here for the actual draft legislation.

Posted on October 21, 2009 by Hunton & Williams LLP Print This Article

House Agriculture Committee Approves Derivatives Regulation

The House Agriculture Committee approved today legislation to regulate over-the-counter ("OTC") derivatives.  Today's approval amends the bill passed out of the House Financial Services Committee on October 15, 2009.  According to today's press release, "the bill institutes a clearing and trading requirement for all OTC swap transactions between dealers and large market participants that are accepted by a clearinghouse.  Additionally, non-cleared swaps must be reported, with major participants and dealers adhering to strengthened capital and margin requirements. The bill exempts commercial end users who use derivatives markets to hedge their price risk from the clearing requirement."

Click here for the House Agriculture Committee's press release, and click here for the legislative text.

Posted on October 2, 2009 by Hunton & Williams LLP Print This Article

Over-The-Counter Derivatives Regulation Draft Bill Released

House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank released a discussion draft of legislation to regulate over-the-counter ("OTC") derivatives Friday on Capitol Hill.  The draft is being circulated in anticipation of the Committee's hearing scheduled for Wednesday, October 7, 2009 on OTC derivatives.  

Click here for the press release, and click here for the full text of the discussion draft of the bill.  
 

Posted on October 1, 2009 by Hunton & Williams LLP Print This Article

Newly Proposed Financial Regulatory Reform Legislation Would Broaden SEC Powers, Create Federal Insurance Office

Three proposed pieces of financial regulatory reform legislation released today would collectively increase the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) power and budget, require private advisers to hedge funds to register with the SEC, and create a Federal Insurance Office to assist policy makers in analyzing the insurance industry, according to today's press release by the House Financial Services Committee's Capital Markets Subcommittee Chairman Paul Kanjorski.  The draft bills are for each of the following, the Investor Protection Act, the Private Fund Investment Advisers Registration Act, and the Federal Insurance Office Act.
 
Click here for today's press release outlining each of the proposed bills.  Click here for the Investor Protection Act draft bill, click here for the Private Fund Investment Advisers Registration Act draft bill, and click here for the Federal Insurance Office Act draft bill.