Deutsche Bank and Credit Suisse Group struck end-of-year, billion-dollar deals with the Obama administration over cases involving toxic securities and fraud allegations, perhaps signaling the end of the era of Big Settlements. As has been widely reported, Deutsche Bank agreed to a $7.2 billion settlement with U.S. authorities while Credit Suisse is going to pay… Read More >>
Brexit Could Put U.K. Clearinghouses in Limbo
The Brexit wars are heating up in the U.K. as the European Referendum draws closer but it is still too early to call the outcome. In the meantime, President Obama lent support to the remain or stay-in campaign during his recent visit to the U.K. But the leave party is doing its level best to… Read More >>
GAO Wants to Break Down Regulatory Silos
The budget watchdog for the federal government, the General Accounting Office (GAO) wants the Congress and the President to clarify the morass of federal regulators overseeing U.S. financial markets, particularly the interactions between the Federal Reserve and the Office of Financial Research (OFR). A report on regulators was part of a larger GAO report on… Read More >>
Obama Wants to Boost Funding for SEC, CFTC
For the last budget of his presidency, Barack Obama will be calling for increased funding of the two main watchdogs of the securities industry — the SEC and CFTC — as a way of maintaining his administration’s Wall Street reforms after he leaves office. The forthcoming budgetary request came to light via a blog posting… Read More >>
DTCC Wants Global Framework for Sharing Swaps Data
Post-trade services and infrastructure provider DTCC would like to see the start of an international discussion about a framework for the global sharing of data about swaps transactions in the wake of federal action to remove a Dodd-Frank Act provision that some saw as an impediment to swaps data sharing globally. In a rare moment… Read More >>
Obama Announces Nominees for SEC Commissioners
The SEC may have a full slate of commissioners by the end of the year as the Obama administration has put forth two nominees — one to fill a current vacancy and another to step in for Commissioner Luis A. Aguilar, who completed his term this year. Aguilar has been serving since 2008 when he… Read More >>
Things to Do After the Apocalypse
This might be my last Minding the Gap column ever as the ancient Mayan calendar points to the world ending on Dec. 21, 2012. However, my guess is that discerning an expiration date for humankind is tricky as multiple cultures have conflicting calendars. But, if the Mayans were wrong, we will have lots to do… Read More >>
Are Obama and Christie a Model for Bipartisanship?
I am cautiously optimistic about the bipartisanship of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and President Obama as they combine forces to help the Garden State recover from Hurricane Sandy. Could it be a model for Congress and the White House to work together on fiscal matters and financial regulation—even if it only lasts for the… Read More >>
