The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has issued an interim final rule that restores streamlined and expedited regulatory procedures to review applications under the Bank Merger Act for business combinations...more
While tariff policy has captured headlines, four recent regulatory reform policy developments are nevertheless significant for the financial services industry. These developments are tied to increasing presidential control...more
4/16/2025
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Banks ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Executive Orders ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Repeal ,
Tariffs ,
Trump Administration ,
U.S. Treasury
The Trump Administration has made clear that it intends to lessen the barriers to bank merger and acquisition activity. As we previously noted, the FDIC has moved to lower some of the impediments to mergers under its 2024...more
Following a key hearing in February, Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott (R-SC) is seeking to protect financial freedom with the introduction of the Financial Integrity and Regulation Management (FIRM) Act. The...more
3/13/2025
/ Banking Sector ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Due Process ,
FDIC ,
Federal Reserve ,
Financial Institutions ,
NCUA ,
OCC ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Senate Committees
The OCC has reiterated that certain crypto-related activities—crypto-asset custody, distributed ledger, and stablecoin activities—previously determined to be permissible remain so. The OCC has also rescinded a Biden-era...more
There is no question that the Trump Administration is taking a markedly different approach to crypto regulation compared to the Biden Administration. The turning of the tide began when the White House nominated former PayPal...more
3/10/2025
/ Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FinTech ,
Fraud ,
Regulation A ,
Safe Harbors ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Tokenization
The FDIC has signaled the reversal of key, controversial proposals from 2024. In doing so, it has provided welcome clarity on important areas that implicate banks of various sizes and charter types, allowing banks to focus on...more
3/5/2025
/ Advertising ,
Banks ,
Brokered Deposits ,
CBCA ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Governance ,
Dodd-Frank ,
FDIC ,
Federal Reserve ,
Financial Institutions ,
Mergers ,
OCC ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform
Trump Administration continues aggressive use of Executive Orders to assert Article II powers.
Latest EO will require one of the most extensive regulatory reviews ever....more
Despite the tone and tint of recent headlines, President Trump's February 18, 2025, "Ensuring Accountability for All Agencies" Executive Order (the "Accountability EO") appears to be the latest in a long line of efforts to...more
2/24/2025
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Executive Orders ,
FDIC ,
Federal Reserve ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
OIRA ,
OMB ,
Popular ,
SCOTUS ,
Statutory Interpretation
The recent confirmation of Russ Vought as director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is expected to kickstart the Administration's centralized approach to reforming the administrative state. The recently revived...more
Recent announcements by Trump Media and Technology Group (TMTG) and X might signal that financial modernization may have finally reached a tipping point. With the right regulatory environment, fintechs and other new market...more
2/6/2025
/ Bitcoin ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
FDIC ,
Federal Reserve ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Fintech Charter ,
OCC ,
Payment Systems ,
Popular
On January 21, 2025, Acting SEC Chairman Mark Uyeda announced the creation of a crypto Task Force dedicated to developing a "comprehensive and clear regulatory framework for crypto assets." Acting Chairman Uyeda tasked...more
1/30/2025
/ CFTC ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Executive Orders ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
FinTech ,
Pilot Programs ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Trump Administration
On January 13, 2024, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit ruled on Coinbase's Petition for Review of the SEC's Order denying Coinbase's Petition for Rulemaking requesting that the Commission promulgate rules...more
1/29/2025
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
CFTC ,
Coinbase ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Due Process ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FCC ,
Popular ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation
We have previously analyzed the recent history of Executive Orders ("EOs") controlling the issuance and content of regulations. As we saw on Inauguration Day 2025, and continue to see, the second Trump Administration is...more
The Trump Administration has embarked on a fundamental shift on how the United States approaches digital assets—in marked contrast with the Biden Administration's policies—likely changing the prospects of the crypto market in...more
1/27/2025
/ Biden Administration ,
Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Congressional Review Act ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Cyber Crimes ,
Digital Assets ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Reserve ,
FinTech ,
Liquidity ,
National Security ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Stablecoins ,
Trump Administration ,
U.S. Treasury
Federal banking agencies under a second Trump Administration are expected to be more receptive to industry proposals for bank mergers, acquisitions, and related transactions. We've previously explored national trust banks and...more
1/17/2025
/ Acquisitions ,
Bank Holding Company Act ,
Bank Merger Act ,
Banking Sector ,
CBCA ,
FDIC ,
Federal Reserve ,
Financial Institutions ,
Foreign Banks ,
Investment ,
Investors ,
Mergers ,
OCC ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Trump Administration
The United States is no stranger to stockpiling strategic assets to serve important national interests. The U.S. strategic gold reserve provides financial stability and supports the value of the U.S. dollar...more
The federal banking agencies under a second Trump Administration are expected to be more receptive to industry proposals geared toward growth. We've previously explored national trust banks to streamline state licensing....more
1/10/2025
/ Banking Sector ,
Banks ,
Compliance ,
FDIC ,
Federal Reserve ,
Financial Institutions ,
FinTech ,
Foreign Investment ,
OCC ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Trump Administration
A recent order handed down by U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria of the Northern District of California could be a new source of concern for digital asset entrepreneurs and the venture capital firms that invest in and support...more
1/3/2025
/ Automation Systems ,
Class Action ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) ,
Digital Assets ,
General Partnerships ,
Institutional Investors ,
Investors ,
Liability ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities Tokens ,
Securities Violations ,
Unregistered Securities ,
Venture Capital
The Digital Chamber ("TDC"), an organization dedicated to championing Bitcoin, digital assets, and blockchain innovation, recently released a proposed agenda for the SEC's new chair and commission titled TDC's "2025 SEC...more
On December 11, 2024, the 5th Circuit issued another important opinion (for the third time this year) requiring that an administrative agency's rules fit squarely within the statutory scheme that empowers the agency to act....more
12/24/2024
/ Board of Directors ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Corporate Governance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Diversity ,
En Banc Review ,
Financial Reporting ,
Nasdaq ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Proposed Rules ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ,
Self-Regulatory Organizations
On December 4, 2024, the CFTC's Division of Enforcement ("Division") released its enforcement results for Fiscal Year 2024. The results reflected an all-time high for monetary relief, mainly from its resolution of off-channel...more
12/11/2024
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Corporate Counsel ,
CTFC ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Digital Assets ,
Disgorgement ,
Enforcement ,
Fraud ,
Know Your Customers ,
Penalties ,
Restitution ,
Whistleblowers
As we have previously noted, we expect that the second Trump Administration will be significantly more favorable to crypto than the Biden Administration, especially with the recent appointment of David Sacks as the...more
12/9/2024
/ Accounting Standards ,
Administrative Procedure Act ,
Anti-Money Laundering ,
Banking Sector ,
Confidential Supervisory Information ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
FDIC ,
Federal Reserve ,
Innovation ,
OCC ,
Operation Choke Point ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Reputational Injury ,
Risk Assessment ,
Transparency ,
Trump Administration
In the absence of modern charters and licenses, payments companies and other fintechs—both established financial services providers and new market entrants—must generally obtain 50+ money transmitter and possibly other state...more
11/25/2024
/ Bank Holding Company Act ,
Banks ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Deposit Insurance ,
FDIC ,
Federal Reserve ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Licenses ,
National Bank Act ,
National Bank Charters ,
OCC ,
Payment Systems ,
Popular ,
Virtual Currency
Efforts by the Executive Branch to shape and control regulatory output is nothing new. Beginning with the Nixon Administration, several administrations have issued Executive Orders (EOs) to limit or otherwise influence how...more