Americans for Financial Reform

AFR IN THE NEWS: Trump’s Threats to Break Up Banks Aren’t Scaring Wall Street Yet (Bloomberg)

“Marcus Stanley, policy director at Americans for Financial Reform, said that he has a hard time taking Trump at his word, especially since he has populated his administration with finance executives. ‘So far, Trump has just talked up Glass-Steagall without actually doing anything, which is what you’d expect from a guy who puts big banks in charge of policy,’ said Stanley, whose group would like to see the law reinstated.”

AFR IN THE NEWS:‘Financial CHOICE Act 2.0’ Rolling Back Consumer Protections Moves Forward (Consumerist)

“’Contrary to its title, H.R. 10 would deprive consumers and investors of any choice of their day in court when resolving serious disputes with powerful financial institutions and force them into a rigged system,’ Amanda Werner, arbitration campaign manager with Americans for Financial Reform and Public Citizen, said in a statement.”

AFR Statement: House Committee Approves Gift to Wall Street and Predatory Lenders

The committee has passed a bill that would give Wall Street and assorted predatory lenders a free hand to abuse consumers and investors, and would increase the likelihood of another financial crisis. If it became law it would make life harder for American families and for small businesses of all types.

AFR, 29 Orgs Raise Concerns Over New Ownership of Predatory Colleges

AFR joined 29 other individuals and organizations representing students, consumers, veterans, servicemembers, and civil rights to send a letter to Education Secretary DeVos raising concerns around the questionable sale of EDMC to the Dream Center Foundation.

AFR Statement: On Confirmation of Jay Clayton to Run SEC

“We are seriously concerned about what Jay Clayton’s leadership will mean for investors and the economy. His longtime client, Goldman Sachs, played a central role in the devastating financial crisis of 2008 and has a long record of questionable market behavior. Clayton himself has numerous direct personal conflicts of interest.”

Letter to Regulators: AFR Calls on CFTC to Forcefully Regulate High-speed Automated Trading

“…We urged the Commission to be more aggressive in laying out structural reforms to the markets and more specific limits on dangerous automated trading practices. The current Supplemental NPRM does not change our basic assessment, as it maintains the basic framework of the 2015 NPRM, with no movement toward additional specificity in risk limits or risk control requirements or reduced discretion for market actors in designing and implementing risk controls…

“Take on Wall Street” Statement: Time to Close an Egregious Loophole

“‘It’s hard to find a more egregious example of Wall Street billionaires rigging the rules for their own advantage than the carried interest loophole,’ said Jon Green, Campaign Manager for the Take on Wall Street campaign. ‘It is an outrageous and unfair benefit for the wealthy and powerful for no reason other than that they are wealthy and powerful. Every member of Congress should stand with Senator Baldwin and Representative Levin in supporting this bill.'”

AFR Statement: Oppose Hensarling’s Bid to Dismantle Wall Street Reform and CFPB

The committee, with the backing of the Trump administration, is gearing up to pass a bill that would give Wall Street and assorted predatory lenders a free hand to abuse consumers and investors, and raise the likelihood of another financial crisis. Congress should be looking for ways to enforce the rules on Wall Street, not reward their army of lobbyists.

Joint Statement: Oppose Rollback of Fiduciary Rule in Congressional Budget Process

“Every additional day that the rule is not implemented and enforced is a day that allows Wall Street firms to drain their clients’ hard-earned savings to the tune of $45 million. Americans saving for an independent and secure retirement need and deserve lawmakers who side with their interests, not Wall Street’s.”

AFR's Amanda Jackson testifies before the House Financial Services Committee

AFR Testimony: Reject Wall Street’s CHOICE Act

“This legislation would be better dubbed ‘Wall Street’s CHOICE Act,’ because it would have a devastating effect on the capacity of regulators to protect the public interest and defend consumers from Wall Street wrongdoing and the economy from risks created by too-big-to-fail financial institutions.” — testimony at House Financial Services Committee hearing, April 26