On April 5, the Securities and Exchange Commission voted to take two actions in the implementation of security-based swap regulation under Title VII of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act).
Continue Reading SEC Issues Notice of Substituted Compliance Application and Proposed Substituted Compliance Order for United Kingdom and Reopens Comment Period for Notice and Proposed Substituted Compliance Order for France

On December 16, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced that it adopted a rule to limit the potential for overlapping or duplicative regulation within its security-based swap regulatory regime. Specifically, the rule exempts certain activities of security-based swap execution facilities (SEFs) and security-based swap dealers from triggering the requirement also to register as a clearing agency. The adopted rule is in line with similar exemptions for broker-dealers and national securities exchanges.
Continue Reading SEC Adopts Clearing Agency Rule to Limit Potential for Overlapping or Duplicative Regulation

On December 16, the Securities and Exchange Commission voted to adopt final rules that will require resource extraction issuers that are required to file reports under Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”) to disclose payments made to the US federal government or foreign governments for the commercial development of oil, natural gas or minerals.
Continue Reading SEC Adopts Final Rules for the Disclosure of Payments by Resource Extraction Issuers

On October 15, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission adopted new rules on position limits. As described in greater detail in Katten’s advisory, CFTC Adopts New Position Limit Requirements, the new rules (1) set forth federal position limits for 25 different futures contracts; (2) enhance the roles played by exchanges in setting limits and granting

In connection with the requirements set forth in Section 1071 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Section 1071), the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released on September 15, both a high-level summary (Summary) and a more detailed outline of the proposals it is considering (Outline) to implement Section 1071’s mandate that the CFPB require financial institutions to “compile, maintain, and submit to the [CFPB] certain data on applications for credit for women-owned, minority-owned, and small businesses.”
Continue Reading CFPB Publishes Proposals to Implement Small Business Lending Data Collection Rulemaking

On July 24, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced that the SEC and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) have adopted a final rule clarifying and implementing provisions relating to the orderly liquidation of certain brokers or dealers (covered broker-dealers) in the event the FDIC is appointed receiver under Title II of the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.
Continue Reading SEC and FDIC Adopt Final Rule on the Orderly Liquidation of Covered Broker-Dealers Under Dodd-Frank

On June 25, the five prudential regulators responsible for the margin rules for bank swap dealers (the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the Farm Credit Administration and the Federal Housing Finance Agency) adopted one final rule and one interim final rule that modify their original framework for margining uncleared swaps.
Continue Reading Prudential Regulators Revise Initial Margin Rules for Uncleared Swaps

On May 22, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) issued an open invitation for member firms and other interested parties to provide views and information about the security-based swap (SBS) market, with particular focus on broker-dealer SBS activities and the application of FINRA rules to those activities. The invitation, which is not a mandatory information request, includes the following questions:
Continue Reading FINRA Requests Comments on Security-Based Swaps

On May 19, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s Global Markets Advisory Committee approved a report that contains several recommendations for action by the CFTC with respect to the implementation of its initial margin (IM) rules for uncleared swaps. The recommendations are focused on the unique challenges faced by small end users of swaps and entities that engage in swap activity through separate managed accounts (SMAs).
Continue Reading CFTC GMAC Recommendations Concerning Initial Margin for Swaps