Regulations issued by federal agencies are under intense scrutiny under the Trump administration, but regulatory bodies also have continued to conduct their own, regularly scheduled regulatory assessments. Learn what measures these organizations are taking to determine the effectiveness of the current policy framework governing financial institutions in this regulatory roundup:
FINRA publishes 2025 Regulatory Oversight Report
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) published its 2025 FINRA Regulatory Oversight Report, which serves as an informational resource comprised of observations from across FINRA’s member supervision, market regulation and enforcement programs. FINRA is the financial sector’s nongovernmental self-regulatory body. Its member firms can use the newly published report throughout the year to strengthen their compliance programs. This year’s report includes new topics, such as the third-party risk landscape, as well as more familiar topics, such as cybersecurity and cyber-enabled fraud, communications with the public, and Regulation Best Interest and Form CRS (common reporting standard) — which have been updated to reflect evolving risks, industry trends and exam findings. Find more details about the report here.
Banking regulators announce second public meeting
Federal bank regulatory agencies announced the second virtual public outreach meeting as part of their statutorily mandated review of existing regulations will be held on March 6. Under the Economic Growth and Regulatory Paperwork Reduction Act, the agencies are required to review their regulations at least once every 10 years to identify any outdated or otherwise unnecessary regulatory requirements applicable to their supervised institutions. The agencies are required to give the public ample opportunities to present their views on the six categories of regulations listed in the first two Federal Register notices: Applications and Reporting; Powers and Activities; International Operations; Consumer Protection; Directors, Officers and Employees; and Money Laundering.[EP1] Learn more here.
CFPB updates list of consumer reporting companies
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released its annual list of consumer reporting companies, identifying dozens of specialty organizations that collect and sell access to people’s data. The data collected and sold by these companies includes records of individuals’ finances, employment, check writing histories, or rental history. The list is meant to enable people to request their consumer reporting data, dispute inaccuracies, and block access to their credit reporting data through security freezes. The list also educates consumers about the types of personal financial information that is collected for credit and other consumer reports. Access the list here.
FTC refunds consumers harmed by mortgage relief scam
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) sent a total of $49,000 in refunds to 198 consumers who paid a fraudulent mortgage relief operation to help them obtain mortgage loan modifications. The companies named in a lawsuit filed by the FTC, HOPE Services and HouseHoldRelief, claimed to have a high success rate helping distressed homeowners modify their loans. However, consumers who paid for their services reported that their lenders never received and funds for these modifications. The FTC’s website includes interactive dashboards for refund data with a state-by-state breakdown of refunds in FTC cases. In 2023, FTC actions led to $330 million in refunds to consumers across the country. Read more about the latest case here.