U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has written a letter urging the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) to recommend new regulations on money market funds.
Geithner’s letter to the FSOC comes on the heels of SEC inaction. In August, SEC head Mary Shapiro announced that she did not have the agency support necessary to pursue money market fund reform in the face of opposition from the nearly $3 trillion industry.
The FSOC is a collaborative regulatory body created by Dodd-Frank and chaired by the Secretary of the Treasury. As chair, Geithner’s letter will pressure the SEC to act on reform. Geithner’s letter recommended reforms such as requiring floating share prices and requiring MMF’s to retain capital against future losses.
The FSOC can act on some measures without the SEC. Regulated entities that sponsor MMF’s, for example, may incur capital surcharges.
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