On September 19, the SEC adopted new rules and amendments under Title VII of the Dodd-Frank Act establishing recordkeeping and reporting requirements for security-based swap dealers and major security-based swap participants, and amending those requirements for broker-dealers. The new rules aim to allow the SEC to better monitor compliance and reduce risk to the market. Release.
On July 23, the Federal Reserve Board and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) released the public sections of the resolution plans submitted by the eight U.S. global systemically important banks. The full resolution plans, which are required by the Dodd-Frank Act and commonly known as living wills, were submitted for the agencies’ review on July 1. Release.
On June 24, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Federal Reserve Board published joint amendments to Regulation CC. Regulation CC implements the Expedited Funds Availability Act of 1987, as amended by the Dodd-Frank Act. The joint amendments implement a statutory requirement to adjust for inflation the funds depository institutions are required to make available to their customers in certain circumstances. Release. Notice.
On February 23, 2018, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (“OCC“) announced a final rule that revised the OCC’s annual stress test regulation. Under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the “Dodd-Frank Act“), the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the “Board“) is required to conduct annual stress tests of holding companies with $50 billion or more in assets. The OCC’s final rule (i) extends the range of possible “as-of” dates used in the global market shock component of the annual stress test to conform to changes made by the Board and (ii) provides additional time for bank holding companies that cross the $50-billion-in-assets threshold in the fourth quarter of a calendar year to prepare for the stress testing requirements. Under the final rule, a bank holding company that crosses the $50 billion threshold in the fourth quarter of a calendar year will not be subject to the stress testing requirements until the third year after it crosses such threshold. Release.
On February 10, 2017, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) extended to February 11, 2018 the expiration dates of certain interim final rules relating to “exemptions under [various securities laws] for those security-based swaps that prior to July 16, 2011 were security‑based swap agreements and are defined as securities under the Securities Act and the Exchange Act as of July 16, 2011 due solely to the provisions of Title VII of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.” Release.
On October 3, 2016, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency proposed a rule to enhance the resilience of federally chartered and licensed financial institutions. The proposed rule addresses concerns relating to the exercise of default rights under certain financial contracts that could interfere with the orderly resolution of systemically important financial firms. The rule requires, among other things, covered banks to ensure that covered qualified financial contracts (i) limit the exercise of default rights based on the insolvency of an affiliate of a covered bank and (ii) contain contractual stay-and-transfer provisions analogous to the statutory stay-and-transfer provision set forth under title II of the Dodd-Frank Act and the Federal Deposit Insurance Act. Comments on the proposed rule are due on October 18, 2016. Press Release.
On August 4, 2016, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced two separate actions relating to the application of the Dodd-Frank Act to cross-border transactions. The CFTC issued a Final Response to District Court Remand Order in Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association, et al. v. United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission that explains the CFTC’s approach to application of swaps regulations internationally. The CFTC’s Divisions of Swap Dealer and Intermediary Oversight (DSIO), Clearing and Risk, and Market Oversight (Divisions) also issued a no-action letter that extends relief to swap dealers registered with the CFTC from certain transaction-level requirements under the Commodity Exchange Act. Press Release.
On July 7, 2016, the Federal Reserve announced that it will extend until July 21, 2017 the conformance period for banking entities to divest ownership in certain legacy investment funds and terminate relationships with funds that are prohibited under Section 619 of the Dodd-Frank Act, commonly known as the Volcker Rule. The Board had announced in December 2014 that it would make this extension to provide for orderly divestitures and to prevent market disruptions. This is the final of the three one-year extensions that the Board is authorized to grant.
In making this announcement, the Federal Reserve emphasized that: “This extension would permit banking entities additional time to divest or conform only ‘legacy covered fund’ investments, such as prohibited investments in hedge funds and private equity funds that were made prior to December 31, 2013. This extension does not apply to investments in and relationships with a covered fund made after December 31, 2013 or to proprietary trading activities; banking entities were required to conform those activities to the final rule by July 21, 2015.”
The Federal Reserve also noted that the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission: “plan to administer their oversight of banking entities under their respective jurisdictions in accordance with the Board’s conformance rule and this extension of the conformance period.”
Finally, the Board noted that: “upon the application of a banking entity, the Board is permitted under section 619 to provide up to an additional five years to conform investments in certain illiquid funds, where the banking entity had a contractual commitment to invest in the fund as of May 1, 2010.” Release.
On May 6, 2016, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Treasury (OCC), the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued and sought comment on a joint proposed rule to implement section 956 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act) relating to the prohibition on and the disclosure of information of incentive-based compensation arrangements. The deadline for comments is July 22, 2016. Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Request for Comment.
On February 17, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation “jointly propos[ed] a rule to implement provisions applicable to the orderly liquidation of covered brokers and dealers under Title II of the Dodd-Frank Act[.]” The two government agencies issued the proposed rule pursuant to the Dodd-Frank Act, which specifically empowers them to regulate the liquidation of specific large financial entities. Release.
