AFR, Author at Americans for Financial Reform

In The News: How to Save the Pandemic Generation (The New Republic)

There’s a looming student debt cliff awaiting us in 2021. With America in the teeth of the Covid-19–enabled economic downturn, lawmakers suspended federal student loan payments for 80 percent of federal student loan borrowers. This measure, which President Donald Trump extended a few weeks ago, is set to expire on New Year’s Eve, which means borrowers will ring in the new year by restarting their student loan payments in one of the worst job markets in a decade.

The Cost of the 2008-2010 Financial Crisis in Sixteen Charts

Sixteen charts showing the lasting impact of the financial crisis on family finances and inequality.

BLOG POST: How Private Equity Harms Workers

In many ways, the private equity industry embodies some of the worst impulses of Wall Street, squeezing profits at the expense of workers and consumers, and insulating bad actors from risks. But these abuses are not inevitable. On the contrary, they are the result of laws and regulations that can and should be changed.

Letters to Regulators: Detailed Comments Opposing OCC True Lender Rule

AFR and our national partners submitted detailed comments opposing the OCC’s proposed true lender rule.

Letters to Regulators: Letter from 101 Groups Opposing OCC True Lender Proposed Rule

Letter from 101 groups opposing OCC’s true lender rule

In The News: Postal Banking: Brought to you by JP Morgan Chase? (Take On Wall Street)

Wall Street has consistently opposed the return of postal banking since its destruction in the 1960s. Chase and other nefarious actors are attempting to prevent competition before it even forms. The 2020 Democratic Party Platform and Biden-Sanders Unity Task Force recommendations both call for postal banking. But they also call on policymakers to separate retail banking institutions from more risky investments and protect consumers from high rates, onerous fees, inequitable credit reporting, and other harms.

In The News: Seeking to Rein in Capitalism, Omidyar Is the Rare Funder Taking on Wall Street (Inside Philanthropy)

“So many fundamental decisions about how the economy works, and who it works for, and who is excluded are made through the decisions we make about finance,” [AFR Executive Director Lisa Donner] said. “There is a huge opportunity to have a transformative impact.”

Letter to Regulators: New “Electronic Trading Risk Principles” Are Inadequate

The AFR Education Fund wrote a letter to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission regarding its proposed new “Electronic Trading Risk Principles”. The letter faulted the principles-based approach as basically allowing Wall Street to regulate itself in this important area. A copy of the letter can

Letters to Regulators: Letter to CFPB on Urging In-Language Outreach to LEP Consumers Facing COVID-19 Hardship and Expansion of Language Access in Mortgage Origination and Servicing

Letter to CFPB urging focused outreach to LEP mortgage borrowers during COVID-19 and expanding language access in mortgage origination and servicing.

In The News: Fed Stimulus Is Resuscitating the High-Yield Bond Market (The Wall Street Journal)

“At these prices, this is not a market screaming, ‘We need help from the Fed,’” said Andrew Park, senior policy analyst at Americans for Financial Reform, which advocates for tighter financial rules on Wall Street.