Americans for Financial Reform

Policy Memo: Federal Reserve Policy & Regulatory Changes Needed in Response to Bank Failures

The Federal Reserve’s deregulatory and light touch approach to regulation and supervision paved the way for the bank failures that have shaken the financial system this year and that led to extraordinary government intervention to preserve financial stability. Below we suggest a set of changes the Fed can make without Congressional action that would increase financial stability and put the welfare of the public ahead of the narrow interests of big banks and Wall Street.

In The News: Fed faults Silicon Valley Bank execs, itself in bank failure (AP)

Alexa Philo, a former bank examiner for the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and senior policy analyst at Americans for Financial Reform, said the Fed could adopt stricter rules on its own, without relying on Congress. “It is long past time to roll back the dangerous deregulation under the last administration to the greatest extent possible, and pay close attention to the largest banks so this crisis does not worsen,” she said.

News Release: House Hearings on Crypto Likely Another Missed Opportunity for Crypto Accountability

Washington, D.C. – New Congressional hearings today on crypto regulation will likely fail to adequately address the many risks that the industry posed to consumers, investors and financial markets by crypto assets and actors, according to advocates with Americans for Financial Reform and Demand Progress.

News Release: Probe of SVB Failure Must Scrutinize Role of Fed Chair Powell

Washington, D.C. – The investigation into the crisis unleashed by the failure of Silicon Valley Bank must scrutinize Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s role in the lead-up to the crisis, according to a fact sheet released by Americans for Financial Reform Education Fund.

In The News: A leading private equity firm claimed to be a climate leader – while increasing emissions (The Guardian)

“Despite its public statements to the contrary, Carlyle is a driving force behind climate change through its substantial financing of greenhouse gas emitting sectors,” said Oscar Valdés Viera, co-author and research manager at the Americans for Financial Reform education fund.

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Letters to Regulators: Letter to OMB on Race and Ethnicity Data Standards

AFREF joined a comment letter to OMB on revising their race and ethnicity data standards.

News Release: Investigation Exposes Carlyle Group’s Hidden Climate Impact

A new investigation released today reveals that the Carlyle Group (Carlyle), a private equity titan with $373 billion in assets under management, has been quietly scooping up fossil fuel assets over the past decade, in contravention of its stated climate goals.

Report: The Carlyle Group’s Hidden Climate Impact: Exposing a Decade of Fossil Fuel Investments

A new investigation reveals that the Carlyle Group has been quietly scooping up fossil fuel assets over the past decade, producing an estimated 277 million metric tons of CO2 emissions.

Powell Owns This Crisis

We now know that Fed Chair Jerome Powell sought to head off questions about responsibility and accountability around March 12, the day federal regulators resorted to a blanket deposit guarantee to stop the crisis from spreading. Perhaps that’s because Powell has an extensive record supporting deregulation and lighter supervision, even before he was confirmed to head the central bank.

News Release: Broad Coalition Urges House Panel to Reject Bill that Defangs Consumer Watchdog

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Starting today at 10 AM ET, the U.S. House Committee on Financial Services will hold a markup and vote on several pieces of legislation, including a wide-ranging bill that would undermine the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and support predatory lenders.