Seeking competitive advantage?
June 10, 2010 | alternatives, federal legislation, industry | Comments (0)From The Hill:
Prosper Marketplace, an online company that arranges loans directly between borrowers and lenders, is lobbying hard for Congress to put a new consumer financial protection regulator in charge of its industry.
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As part of the Wall Street overhaul package in Congress, Prosper is lobbying for a provision that would place the new consumer regulator over the industry. The company is waging a vocal battle against the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which found in 2008 the firm was trading in securities and needed to comply with securities law.
Prosper, which has spent $330,000 lobbying in the last year with the Podesta Group, won its case in the House last December. But the Senate did not include a similar measure when it passed its version of the bill in May.
House conferees named
June 9, 2010 | federal legislation, industry | Comments (0)From the story:
House leaders announced their conferees for the House-Senate conference to work out final details on a financial regulatory reform bill set to begin Thursday afternoon.
The conference can be watched on C-SPAN3 or C-SPAN.org. It also will be webcast on the House Financial Services or the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs websites.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) announced the Democrats from the House Financial Services Committee: Chairman Barney Frank (Mass.); Reps. Paul Kanjorski (Pa.); Maxine Waters (Calif.); Carolyn Maloney (N.Y.), Luis Gutierrez (Ill.); Mel Watt (N.C); Gregory Meeks (N.Y.); Dennis Moore (Kan.); Mary Jo Kilroy (Ohio) and Gary Peters (Mich).
Conference schedule
June 9, 2010 | federal legislation, industry | Comments (0)From the story:
U.S. lawmakers are to meet Thursday to start negotiating over the differences between the House and Senate bills on financial reform.
The first meeting, which will include more than 20 lawmakers from both chambers, will be televised on C-SPAN. Other negotiation sessions are planned for June 15, 16, 17, 22, 23, and 24, according to The New York Times. Rep. Barney Frank, who will chair the conference committee proceedings, has said the White House would like to see an agreement reached before President Obama leaves for a summit of the Group of 20 nations in Toronto on June 26.
Dodd in no hurry
June 9, 2010 | federal legislation, industry | Comments (0)Completing financial regulatory reform legislation by the end of June is “a goal, not a deadline,” Senate Banking Chairman Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) said Tuesday.
Today
June 9, 2010 | federal legislation, industry | Comments (0)House appoints conferees to the financial reform bill.
Now they hate PDL alternatives
June 8, 2010 | federal legislation, industry, research | Comments (0)National Consumer Law Center is now attacking payday loan alternatives as having the same costs as payday lenders. We’ve been saying it for years, however, our position is to let the consumers choose. Their position is to ban everything.
I guess that’s settled
June 8, 2010 | alternatives, federal legislation, industry | Comments (0)The conference is set to begin on Thursday, but today’s Huffington Post reports this:
A provision despised by credit card companies will remain in the final Wall Street reform bill that emerges from conference committee negotiations, Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) told reporters Monday evening.
Dodd, who is leading conference negotiations for the Senate, said that changes will likely be made to the “swipe fee” amendment that was included in his chamber’s version. Sponsored by Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the number two Democrat, the amendment would reduce the fees that credit card companies can charge to retail stores for using the cards. The current fee far exceeds the cost of the transaction, which stores pass on to consumers. The fee is a lucrative source of revenue for credit card companies and hated by merchants.
Prudent consumers
June 8, 2010 | federal legislation, industry | Comments (0)The Wall Street Journal covers a speech by Fed Board member Elizabeth Duke:
“I have every confidence that competition will ultimately restore innovation, but with products that are safer, simpler, and more transparent to consumers,” Fed Board Governor Elizabeth Duke said, outlining five principles that she believes can guide industry and policymakers toward “balancing access to credit and sound risk management.”
Those five principles: enhanced consumer protection, prudent underwriting, transparency, easy to understand credit disclosures and retail mortgage contracts, and rules that stifle competing interests that negatively impact consumers. If employed effectively, these principles could protract the “robust system” that Duke said is necessary for economic growth.
Can’t argue with the principles. But what if the practice of “consumer protection” leads to limite choice?
Latest
June 8, 2010 | federal legislation, industry | Comments (0)From Congressional Quarterly (no link because it’s a subscription service):
“The big question is, ‘Where are the divisions going to be among Democrats?’ ” said Bert Ely, an independent financial analyst. “The Democratic Caucus has a wide range of ideology.”
The Senate last month appointed seven Democrats and five Republicans to the conference committee. House leaders are expected on Wednesday to nominate eight Democrats and five Republicans.
The current plan is for the conference to meet formally June 10 to install House Financial Services Chairman Barney Frank, D-Mass., as the panel’s chairman and hear opening statements. That will provide the first firm clues in weeks to whether Democrats will be able to gel.
Are we forgotten?
June 8, 2010 | federal legislation, industry | Comments (0)Politico headline this morning: “Banks queasy as reform deal nears.” Substitute “payday lenders” in the headline for “banks” and see if that works for you.
