News Release: Senate Votes for More Too-Big-To-Fail Megabanks

The Senate overturned a tiny but critical regulatory change by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency that eliminated two relics from over 25 years ago: the automatic approval of bank mergers and the expedited review of bank merger applications. These deeply flawed 1996 regulations rubber-stamped bank mergers and ushered in a merger wave that massively consolidated the banking industry, created too-big-to-fail megabanks, and contributed to the 2008 financial crisis.

Cryptocurrency

Blog: Trump Crypto Ventures Should Stall Senate Consideration of Stablecoin Bill

The Senate is moving toward legislation to embed cryptocurrency tokens known as stablecoins into the fabric of the financial system at the very same time that a prominent person – no less than President Trump – is plumbing the depths of corruption and conflicts of interest. The beginning of the solution to the problem of crypto scams and corruption involves stopping this legislation – not fast-tracking it to enactment.

Cryptocurrency

News Release: AFR Statement Commending Ranking Member Waters for Standing up to Crypto Corruption

More members of Congress are recognizing that just like oil and water, consumer protection and crypto corruption don’t mix. Trump’s crypto empire has become a source of profits and power that shows blatant disregard for ethics — even as he promotes crypto policies that will enrich him and his crypto allies — which has become impossible to overlook.

In the News: An Insurance Crisis Compounded by Climate Change Threatens the Broader U.S. Economy

“People place a lot of value, besides economic value, on where they live, and a lot of people don’t have the resources to move anyway,” said Alex Martin, policy director at Climate and Finance at Americans for Financial Reform. “People aren’t able to afford the cost increases that are coming right now. And if they can’t do that, just raising rates continuously will not be a holistic solution.”

News Release: Broad Coalition of State Groups Urges Congress to Reject Attempts to Gut Consumer Protections

Yesterday, the House Financial Services Committee voted on party lines to strip away consumer and investor protections to pay for tax breaks for billionaires and corporations as part of the budget reconciliation package. The Committee’s legislation included deep cuts to the funding for the  Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), an agency dedicated to protecting people from financial predation and scams.

News Release: Private Equity Climate Risks project launches new private equity asset tracker, as part of its energy tracker, exposing continued fossil fuel investments by top 20 private equity firms

Today, the Private Equity Climate Risks (PECR) data consortium project launched an asset tracker with new data reflecting the state of private equity energy investments as of April 2025. This enhanced Global Energy Tracker includes the previous Global Energy Company Tracker, updated in January 2025, and the new Global Fossil Fuel Asset Tracker, providing an unparalleled look into the private equity industry’s role in the energy sector.