The Filing Cabinet

As part of his farewell tour, Thomas Hoenig, the departing vice chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, used a recent speech to candidly address the challenge of balancing prudential standards and regulatory initiatives when attempting to end big bank bailouts.

The Federal Reserve is “considering broad revisions to the Volcker rule compliance regime,” in addition to changes to make the rule easier to understand and less burdensome, says Vice Chairman for Supervision Randal Quarles.

The latest effort to revise the Dodd-Frank Act’s Volcker rule is a public comment period, orchestrated by The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, that may lead to a multi-agency Notice of Proposed Rulemaking.

A slate of recommended regulatory actions are contained in a new report delivered to President Donald J. Trump by the Treasury Department. Suggested changes would affect big bank stress tests, the Volcker rule, and the CFPB.

Banks have some new guidance on how to seek an extension for conforming their investments in "illiquid funds" to the Dodd-Frank Act's Volcker Rule. Joe Mont reports.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has added another round of supplemental guidance to its growing list of “frequently asked questions” regarding Volcker Rule compliance. The latest updates, released on Sept. 25, address CEO attestation and compliance program requirements for market-making activities. More inside.

July 21 was a big day for banks and the beginning of the Volcker Rule’s compliance regime. The rule, a cornerstone of the Dodd-Frank Act, prohibits proprietary trading activities at federally insured banks. In our latest podcast we talk to Chris Scarpati, a partner in PwC’s financial regulation practice, about what the deadline entailed and what’s ahead for these financial institutions. Details inside.

Paul Volcker, the famed former Fed chairman and namesake of the most controversial rule in the Dodd-Frank Act, is proposing a slate of financial reform proposals that would merge the SEC and CFTC and create new regulatory agencies. The Volcker Alliance—a non-partisan, non-profit organization launched in 2013—issued a report warning that “failure to reorganize the regulatory structure will make us more vulnerable to the next financial crisis.” Details inside.

The new Republican majority in Congress launched its first strike against the Dodd-Frank Act last Wednesday, passing a bill that offers banks a semi-reprieve from the Volcker Rule and exempts small companies from filing financial statements tagged in XBRL. The legislation now moves to a Senate vote and is likely to incur a veto by President Barack Obama. Details inside.

The Federal Reserve Board is giving financial insitutions more time to comply with the Volcker rule’s demand that they extricate themselves from investments in hedge funds and private equity funds and wind down speculative positions held on their own behalf, rather than for clients. Banks will until 2017 to unwind from certain holdings.

In a recent speech, Comptroller of the Currency  Thomas Curry floated some regulatory reforms that could make compliance easier for small- and medium-sized banks, including a new examination cycle for healthy banks. “It’s important that they, like other businesses, have the flexibility to adapt to changing economic and business environments,” he said.