Developments in Securities Regulation, Corporate Governance, Capital Markets, M&A and Other Topics of Interest. MORE

President Trump has signed an executive order titled “Presidential Executive Order on Core Principles for Regulating the United States Financial System.

The “Core Principles” are:

  • empower Americans to make independent financial decisions and informed choices in the marketplace, save for retirement, and build individual wealth;
  • prevent taxpayer-funded bailouts;
  • foster economic growth and vibrant financial markets through more rigorous regulatory impact analysis that addresses systemic risk and market failures, such as moral hazard and information asymmetry;
  • enable American companies to be competitive with foreign firms in domestic and foreign markets;
  • advance American interests in international financial regulatory negotiations and meetings;
  • restore public accountability within Federal financial regulatory agencies and rationalize the Federal financial regulatory framework.

Substantively, the executive order requires the Secretary of the Treasury to consult with the heads of the member agencies of the Financial Stability Oversight Council and to report to the President within 120 days of the date of the order (and periodically thereafter) on the extent to which existing laws, treaties, regulations, guidance, reporting and recordkeeping requirements, and other Government policies promote the Core Principles and what actions have been taken, and are currently being taken, to promote and support the Core Principles. That report, and all subsequent reports, must identify any laws, treaties, regulations, guidance, reporting and recordkeeping requirements, and other Government policies that inhibit Federal regulation of the United States financial system in a manner consistent with the Core Principles.

In a press release, House Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling noted: “I’m very pleased that President Trump signed this executive action, which closely mirrors provisions that are found in the Financial CHOICE Act to end Wall Street bailouts, end ‘too big to fail,’ and end top-down regulations that make it harder for our economy to grow and for hardworking Americans to achieve financial independence.  When Dodd-Frank was passed, Americans were promised a healthier economy, an end to bailouts and better consumer protections.  Instead, we have the weakest recovery in history, a guarantee of more Wall Street bailouts, and consumer costs have gone up while their choices have gone down.  Today the big banks are bigger and the small banks are fewer.  Everything from mortgages to credit cards to monthly checking fees costs more because of Dodd-Frank’s red tape, if consumers can even get access to them.”