SEC

The American Securities Association touted a victory for market exchanges in a recent court case involving the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

The District of Columbia Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the SEC did not have authority to implement its Access Fee Pilot, which was created to gather data so the SEC might be able to determine in the future whether regulatory action was necessary.

Read on for more details from the case, and reaction from the association.

The Securities and Exchange Commission settled with credit rating agency Morningstar Credit Ratings LLC for violating a conflict of interest rule designed to separate credit ratings and analysis from sales and marketing efforts.

Morningstar agreed to pay $3.5 million to settle the charges, although it did not admit to nor deny the charges.

Read on for details from the enforcement action.

The groups have filed a petition for a rulemaking that would seek to end the agency’s regulation by enforcement tactics.

“This is not how the rule of law is supposed to work,” the groups said.

Although the financial services industry has cheered each announcement of a delay in implementation in CECL compliance, Kroll Bond Rating Agency (KBRA) Senior Director Ethan Heisler argued in a recent report that the implementation of the new accounting standard should not be delayed.

Read on for details from the report.

“In short, the dramatic price volatility in the market for agency mortgage-backed securities (MBS) over the past week is leading to broker-dealer margin calls on mortgage lenders’ hedge positions that are unsustainable for many such lenders,” MBA President and CEO Bob Broeksmit stated in a letter to the agencies.

Read on for details of the situation.

As part of the settlement, Wells Fargo admitted that it collected millions of dollars in fees and interest to which the company was not entitled.

Read on for details, reaction from Wells Fargo, and much more.

Offering feedback on the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) proposed updates to statistical disclosures which SEC-registered financial institutions provide to investors, some banking industry advocates urged the agency to leave out requirements on current expected credit loss (CECL) disclosures.

Banking trade advocates encouraged SEC officials to hold off on creating CECL-related disclosure requirements until CECL standards are developed fully.

Find out more details about the proposal.

The financial industry has been afforded the first month of 2020 to weigh in on a mandatory review of the risk retention mortgage (QRM) final rule, finalized in 2014 in accordance with the Dodd-Frank Act.

Stakeholders also are encouraged to suggest potential changes to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Qualified Mortgages definition, which is aligned with the QRM standard.

Learn more details about what the review will entail.

Numerous federal financial agencies likely will be operational to begin 2020 thanks to the adoption of a $13.06 billion appropriations package outlined in the House’s FY 2020 spending bill.

The spending package provides more federal funding than the FY 2019 enacted level and more than the Trump administration’s budget request.

Find out more details about the spending package.

The five federal financial regulatory agencies recently published a final rule intended to simplify implementing regulations of Section 13 of the Bank Holding Company (BHC) Act, commonly known as the Volcker Rule.

The final rule revises numerous provisions of the Volcker Rule, intended to provide clarity and streamline compliance obligations based on trading assets and liabilities.

Learn more about changes enacted by the rule.