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Although Senate Banking (see Client Report REFORM208) and HFSC’s (see Client Report REFORM209) hearings this week with Secretary Yellen and Chair Powell ostensibly focused on the CARES Act, in reality they covered the waterfront. In between them, HFSC’s Consumer Protection Subcommittee considered risks from fintech and much more (see Client Report MERGER7). This session made clear that a bipartisan consensus is forming around the need to bring fintech inside the regulatory perimeter when not partnering with a bank. At the least, this consensus powers up the banking agencies’ efforts to use their third-party vendor powers to impose consumer-protection and safety-and soundness rules on fintechs linked to banks (see FSM Report VENDOR9). More importantly, they signal initial Congressional alignments that may well lead to substantive legislation in 2022 and, even if they don’t, will surely lead to a new regulatory framework