US Reg Round Up: 07/05/2025
Federal Reserve
Federal Reserve Board announces the withdrawal of guidance for banks related to their crypto-asset and dollar token activities and related changes to its expectations for these activities 24 April 2025
The Federal Reserve Board withdrew guidance on banks’ crypto-asset and dollar token activities to align with evolving risks and foster innovation. The 2022 supervisory letter requiring state member banks to notify the Board of crypto-asset activities was rescinded, shifting oversight to standard supervisory processes. The 2023 letter on the nonobjection process for dollar token activities was also withdrawn. Additionally, the Board, alongside the FDIC, joined the OCC in retracting two 2023 joint statements on banks’ crypto activities, with plans to explore new guidance to support innovation.
Federal Reserve Board requests comment on a proposal to reduce the volatility of the capital requirements stemming from the Board's annual stress test results 17 April 2025
The Federal Reserve Board has proposed changes to reduce volatility in capital requirements derived from its annual stress tests. Key measures include averaging stress test results over two years and shifting the stress capital buffer’s effective date to January 1, giving banks more time to adjust. These adjustments aim to smooth fluctuations without significantly impacting capital levels.
The proposal also includes streamlining stress test data collection, with further plans to enhance transparency by inviting public comment on the stress test models and scenarios later this year. Comments on the current proposal are due within 60 days of its Federal Register publication.
Securities and Exchange Commission
SEC Publishes New Market Data, Analysis, and Visualisations 28 April 2025
The SEC’s Division of Economic and Risk Analysis (DERA) released a suite of reports on key capital markets, including public issuers, exempt offerings, structured finance, money market funds, and security-based swap dealers. The data and analysis aim to boost transparency and provide insights for investors, academics, and market participants.
Highlights include updated statistics on registered issuers, exempt offerings under Reg A, D, and Crowdfunding, and detailed issuance and rating trends in the CMBS and ABS markets. The reports also analyse money market fund price movements during the March 2020 dislocation and provide data on registered security-based swap dealers.