#Federalreserve – Page 4 – Federal Financial Analytics

26 01, 2024

DAILY012624

Eliza Allen2024-01-26T16:09:38-05:00January 26th, 2024|2- Daily Briefing|

Agencies Rewrite Call Reports Ahead of Final Capital Regs

Despite growing bipartisan concern over a capital proposal likely to be significantly revised, the Fed, OCC, and FDIC today requested comment on proposed changes to call reporting requirements as well as regulatory capital and market risk capital reporting requirements to ensure that these conform with the agencies’ proposal. Many changes reflect the departure from the advanced approach, with the agencies arguing that new disclosure requirements would increase transparency and complement the supervisory review process. Certain item instructions would also be altered to reflect AOCI transition requirements, while form terminology would change to reflect the proposed expanded risk-based approach and the scope of banking organizations covered.

Daily012624.pdf…

22 01, 2024

DAILY012224

Eliza Allen2024-01-22T16:57:16-05:00January 22nd, 2024|2- Daily Briefing|

FRB Reconsiders Interchange-Fee Cuts

Bowing to critics in the banking industry and on the Board, the Federal Reserve today extended the comment period on its debit-card interchange fee proposal (see FSM report INTERCHANGE12) by a surprisingly-long ninety days to May 12. The extension is in part due to the Board’s decision to publish additional interchange fee cap data which may have persuaded the Board that the initial data analysis supporting a mandatory pricing reduction was incorrect.

OIG Finds Reserve-Bank Trades Legal, But Problematic

The Federal Reserve’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) today released long-awaited reviews of personal trades by former Dallas and Boston Reserve Bank Presidents two years ago that raised numerous and often vociferous assertions of conflicts of interest. Indeed, Sen. Warren (D-MA) stated that she believed these epitomized a “culture of corruption” at the Fed, introducing bipartisan legislation to force considerably more transparency at the Reserve Banks.

FSB Plans Global Run-Risk Buffers

The head of the Financial Stability Board, Secretary General John Schindler, today briefed media on the global regulator’s plans to brief the G20 in October about viral-run risk and the standards needed to avert it. Mr. Schindler said little about what the FSB is likely to propose although the Basel Committee is now considering rewrites to global LCR and NSFR standards likely to be reflected in the FSB’s recommendations.

Daily012224.pdf…

22 01, 2024

GSE-012224

Eliza Allen2024-01-22T16:02:39-05:00January 22nd, 2024|4- GSE Activity Report|

Securitization and Systemic Risk

A new Fed staff study uses models to conclude that government-backed mortgage securitization exacerbates financial crises, contradicting conventional wisdom that – GSE blow-ups notwithstanding – properly-regulated GSEs create a liquid, diversified asset pool for an otherwise illiquid, risky asset class. However, our read of the study leads us to side with conventional wisdom.

GSE-012224.pdf…

17 01, 2024

DAILY011724

Eliza Allen2024-01-17T16:21:16-05:00January 17th, 2024|2- Daily Briefing|

CFPB Tries to Bring Overdraft Fees Under New Benchmark

Arguing that overdraft fees are a big-bank “junk-fee harvesting machine,” CFPB Director Chopra today released a long-awaited proposal to cap fees to what the agency considers a reasonable threshold.

Bowman Expands Basel Critique, Key Dem Now Points to Problems

In remarks today, FRB Gov. Bowman did not go quite as far as her colleague Chris Waller yesterday, but she nonetheless urged that the end-game rules be re-proposed after comments are taken into account.

Senate Banking GOP Again Urges Capital Proposal Withdrawal

Senate Banking Ranking Member Scott (R-SC) along with all Committee Republicans late yesterday sent a letter to FRB Chair Powell, FDIC Chairman Gruenberg, and Acting Comptroller Hsu once again calling on the regulators to withdraw the capital proposal (see FSM Report CAPITAL230).

Biden, Brown Praise CFPB Overdraft Proposal

Following the CFPB’s announcement of its proposed rule regarding overdraft fees today, President Biden again denounced “junk fees” as “exploitation,” and included the CFPB’s proposal in his administration’s efforts to lower costs for American consumers.

FRB/FDIC Provide Limited-Time Resolution-Plan Filing Flexibility

Reflecting a problem we identified in our assessment of the resolution-plan proposal (see FSM Report LIVINGWILL22), the FRB and FDIC today extended the resolution plan submission deadline for categories II and III banks from July 1, 2024 to March 31, 2025.

Global Regulators Turn to OTC-Derivative Margin Improvement

Following yesterday’s release with the CPMI focused on CCPs and clearing members, the Basel Committee and IOSCO today …

16 01, 2024

DAILY011624

Eliza Allen2024-01-16T16:33:43-05:00January 16th, 2024|2- Daily Briefing|

Waller Raises Stakes for End-Game Finalization

Going beyond his longstanding critique of the end-game rules, FRB Gov. Waller today reflected industry comments and litigation plans, saying that he now thinks the proposal needs a “major overhaul” or should be withdrawn and reissued. As we noted in our recent 2024 outlook, Gov. Bowman will surely side with this view, but Chair Powell holds the gavel when it comes to the end-game outcome at the Federal Reserve. Mr. Waller also is personally opposed to the pending rewrite of debit-card interchange fees (see FSM Report INTERCHANGE12) because it forces the Fed to pick winners and losers.

Global Regulators Try Transparency as Cure to CCP-Margin Risk

The Basel Committee, CPMI, and IOSCO today released a long-planned consultation on CCP and clearing-member margining practices. These are designed to limit the volatile and potentially-systemic liquidity stresses due to margining practices evident in 2020 and again after the Ukraine invasion, with the extent to which these further shift cost burdens from CCPs to clearing members their most controversial aspect. Largely focused on transparency, the new approach would require CCPs to provide clearing members with margin-simulation tools that members would then make available to end-users to enhance margin-call preparedness.

Daily011624.pdf…

12 01, 2024

DAILY011224

Eliza Allen2024-01-12T15:31:11-05:00January 12th, 2024|2- Daily Briefing|

Emmer, HFSC GOP Reintroduce FSOC Oversight Measure

Following a hearing earlier this week at which GOP Members reiterated longstanding FSOC criticism, House Majority Whip Emmer (R-MN) has reintroduced legislation along with ten other HFSC Republicans to bring FSOC under congressional appropriations.

HFSC Bipartisan AI Task Force Already Divided on Key Priorities

Reflecting growing concern about AI’s risks (see Client Report FSOC29), HFSC Chairman McHenry (R-NC) and Ranking Member Waters (D-CA) yesterday announced the creation of a bipartisan AI Working Group to be led by Digital Assets Subcommittee Chairman Hill (R-AR) and Ranking Member Lynch (D-MA).

House Passes Measures to Check Chinese Economic Power

The House today passed several bills addressing the role of China in IMF and World Bank policy and a renewed attempt to limit what many Members of Congress consider Chinese currency manipulation (H. R. 839).

The Fed Becomes a Big Loser

The Federal Reserve System today released its preliminary FY23 financial results, the first look into the System’s operating condition above and beyond its significant mark-to-market losses.

Daily011224.pdf…

9 01, 2024

DAILY010924

Eliza Allen2024-01-09T16:48:15-05:00January 9th, 2024|2- Daily Briefing|

Bowman Now Tackles Supervisory Transparency

In remarks late yesterday, FRB Gov. Bowman added a new concern: supervisory transparency. She indicated that the Fed’s supervisory expectations have changed to the point at which some state agencies think the Fed goes too far, but banks have no way of anticipating possible supervisory injunctions. As a result, she argues for near-term transparency via public notice-and-comment guidance or rulemaking.

Barr Bows a Bit

Answering questions today, FRB Vice Chair Barr indicated that the BTFP may well close on March 11, emphasizing the importance of adhering to the Fed’s emergency-liquidity mandate. That said, loans will be extended until the one-year anniversary and may remain until 2025. He also outlined a significant compromise on the operational-risk section of the end-game rules (see FSM Report OPSRISK22), more closely aligning the proposal with the Basel standards as our outlook anticipated.

Daily010924.pdf…

8 01, 2024

M010824

Eliza Allen2024-01-08T11:25:26-05:00January 8th, 2024|6- Client Memo|

Reflections on Regulatory Failure and a Better Way

Earlier today, we released our 2024 regulatory outlook, a nice summary of which may be found on Politico’s Morning Money. As I reviewed the draft, I realized how much of what the agencies plan is doomed to do little of what has long been needed to insulate the financial system from repeated shock. This is a most wearisome thought that then prompted the philosophical reflection also to be found in this brief. It asks why lots more bank rules do so little for financial resilience yet are always followed by still more rules and then an even bigger bust. I conclude that financial policy should be founded on Samuel Johnson’s observation that, “when a man knows he is to be hanged in a fortnight, it concentrates his mind wonderfully.” That is, redesign policy from one focused on endless, ever-more-complex rules spawning still larger bureaucracies into credible, certain, painful resolutions to concentrate each financial institution’s mind and that of a market that would no longer be assured of bailout or backstop.

m010824.pdf…

8 01, 2024

Karen Petrou: Reflections on Regulatory Failure and a Better Way

Eliza Allen2024-01-08T11:25:21-05:00January 8th, 2024|The Vault|

Earlier today, we released our 2024 regulatory outlook, a nice summary of which may be found on Politico’s Morning Money. As I reviewed the draft, I realized how much of what the agencies plan is doomed to do little of what has long been needed to insulate the financial system from repeated shock. This is a most wearisome thought that then prompted the philosophical reflection also to be found in this brief. It asks why lots more bank rules do so little for financial resilience yet are always followed by still more rules and then an even bigger bust. I conclude that financial policy should be founded on Samuel Johnson’s observation that, “when a man knows he is to be hanged in a fortnight, it concentrates his mind wonderfully.” That is, redesign policy from one focused on endless, ever-more-complex rules spawning still larger bureaucracies into credible, certain, painful resolutions to concentrate each financial institution’s mind and that of a market that would no longer be assured of bailout or backstop.

We know in our everyday lives that complex rules backed by empty threats lead to very bad behavior. For example, most parents do not get their kids to brush their teeth by issuing an edict reading something like:

It has long been demonstrated that brushing your teeth from top to bottom, tooth-by-tooth, flossing hereafter and using toothpaste meeting specifications defined herein will achieve cleaner teeth, a brighter smile, improved public acceptance of the tooth-bearer, and lower cost to …

3 01, 2024

DAILY010324

Eliza Allen2024-01-03T16:38:18-05:00January 3rd, 2024|2- Daily Briefing|

EBA Plans Full-Bore NBFI Crackdown

We will shortly provide clients with an in-depth analysis of notable changes to call reporting released for comment late last year. Today’s Financial Times interviews José Manuel Campa, the chair of the European Banking Authority (EBA), whose comments on NBFIs make it clear that, as we expected, the U.S. action is part of a broader global push to map bank/NBFI interconnections and then curtail them. The EBA is also planning to stress-test these interconnections, a move we expect also from the Fed when it moves forward on Vice Chair Barr’s multi-scenario test plans.

Women Do Too Know

The Federal Reserve Board this week has issued a staff note finding that the so-called financial literacy gender gap is largely driven by study design, not gender differences in financial literacy. This has considerable implications for many financial-literacy programs now specifically targeted to women. The note finds that women are much more likely than men to utilize the “don’t know” choice even though men and women actually respond incorrectly at similar rates.

Daily010324.pdf…