This new report (from the AFR Activism Fund) tracks a stream of efforts by members of the current Congress to undermine one of the major acts of the last Congress: the Dodd-Frank financial reform law. Since Dodd-Frank, Wall Street interests have lobbied to roll back
Six financial regulators are challenging the logic of a Senate bill (S. 3468) that would empower the President to direct their agencies (among others) to submit all proposed rules to the White House Office of Management and Budget for prior review. The bill, known as
In a 181-page letter to federal regulators, the American Bankers Association, the Financial Services Roundtable, and the Securities Industry & Financial Markets Association take aim at a set of proposed rules intended to ensure compliance with new international capital standards. Regulators should have “conducted an
In an Oct. 23 letter, AFR urged the Securities and Exchange Commission not to to approve the organization and marketing of a commodity Exchange Traded Fund based on the storage of physical copper. Allowing speculators to hoard this vital industrial metal would damage the economy and set a dangerous precedent, the letter warned.
AFR commented on a set of banking agency proposals for implementing the initial Basel III rules for U.S. banks. These rules cover the definition of capital, base levels of capital for all banks, risk weighting, and exposure measurement. Upcoming rules will address capital charges for
“A lobbying campaign by the securities industry threatens to water down a U.S. financial reform measure that was supposed to protect American states, towns and cities from being taken for a ride by financial advisors,” Karen Brettell of Reuters reports. Under pressure from House Republicans,
AFR’s foreclosure working group has appealed to the monitor of the national mortgage settlement to include race, ethnicity, and geography in a public process of evaluation. In a letter to Joseph Smith of the North Carolina-based Office of Mortgage Settlement Oversight, the working group pointed
In an Oct. 9th letter to the CFPB, AFR criticized the bureau’s proposed rule for mortgage servicers, especially a provision allowing servicers to take a “dual-track” approach – considering a loan modification and pursuing foreclosure at the same time. The letter, co-signed by the NAACP,
Mandatory arbitration and its impact on the world of consumer finance was the topic of a Capitol Hill briefing sponsored by AFR, Public Citizen & the National Association of Consumer Advocates.
Americans for Financial Reform, Public Citizen, and the National Association Consumer Advocates held a briefing on the pervasive practice of mandatory binding arbitration in contracts for credit cards, student loans, payday loans, and assorted other financial products.