President
Donald Trump directed a
freeze on federal rulemaking pending review, giving his
administration the opportunity to reconsider any rules close to being proposed
or completed. Freezing regulations for review is a standard transition
practice.
- Any rules sent to the Federal Register
that have not yet been published are to be withdrawn for review.
- Any rule recently published that has
not yet taken effect will have its effective date delayed 60 days.
Personnel Is
Policy
As reported
in December 2024 by CREFC, President Donald Trump nominated Paul
Atkins, former Commissioner at the Securities and Exchange Commission
(SEC), to head the SEC. Please see here
for details on Atkins’ agenda.
On Jan. 21, Trump
nominated Bill Pulte to lead the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA).
- Pulte is CEO of Pulte Capital
Partners LLC, a strategic investment firm that invests in building
products businesses. He is the grandson of William Pulte, founder of the
Pulte residential home construction company.
- Pulte’s nomination came as a surprise
given his lack of experience in the housing finance market. However, his
comments on the lack of housing supply in the U.S. reflect Trump’s focus
on the housing sector.
- During a 2024 interview on Fox
Business, Pulte blamed regulation and the lack of
housing supply for driving up home prices, stating that “until we
increase supply, whether it comes from old homes. . . or new homes,
you’re going to have these prices go up.”
Other than
Pulte’s nomination, Trump’s focus on financial services generally
has taken a back seat to other priorities, such as immigration and DEI. Yet, he
has named acting heads for a few key agencies. These officials will run their
respective agencies on an interim basis until full-time chairs are nominated
and confirmed.
- SEC: Mark Uyeda, currently an SEC
Commissioner, will serve as acting head. During his time as a
commissioner, Uyeda has argued the SEC is operating outside of its
mandate. He will serve on the SEC alongside fellow Republican Commissioner
Hester Peirce and Democratic Commissioner Caroline Crenshaw.
- Commodity Futures Trading Commission
(CFTC): CFTC
Commissioner Caroline Pham has been named acting CFTC Chair. One of
the agency’s five politically-appointed commissioners since 2022, Pham has
advocated for clearer crypto rules and focused on American competitiveness
and right-sizing regulations to promote market liquidity.
- Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
(FDIC): FDIC
Vice Chair Travis Hill assumed the role of Acting Chair Monday, outlining a comprehensive agenda of priorities.
In addition, Hill committed to ensuring that the FDIC “remains within our
statutory mandates, and stops coloring outside the lines.”
- Given that Hill is considered a top
candidate for FDIC Chair, his priorities provide insight into the path
bank regulators might take over the next few years.
Trump
surprised many market observers by not firing Rohit Chopra, director of
the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) or replacing Michael Hsu,
Acting Director of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), on day
one of his presidency. Additionally, Caroline Crenshaw, a Democrat on
the SEC whose term recently expired, has retained her seat for now.
What people
are saying: Identifying and installing leaders across the financial
regulatory agencies can be like a game of chess.
- Trump might have been waiting for
Treasury Secretary nominee Scott Bessent to be confirmed and in place at
Treasury before making final decisions about other financial regulators.
With Bessent’s confirmation last night, we might see more nominations soon.
- American Banker notes that the Trump
administration “has been stalled in filling posts for the CFPB and the
OCC, in part, by longstanding tradition that has entitled the minority
party to fill two of the five seats on the FDIC's board.”
- The FDIC board is composed of a
chairman, a vice chair, the heads of the CFPB and the OCC, and one board
member of the opposing political party.
- As Isaac Boltansky, managing director
and director of policy research at BTIG, stated, "As
soon as Trump replaces the heads of the OCC and CFPB, there will be too
many Republicans on the five-member board and one of them will need to
depart.”
Key policy
news? In terms of financial policy, GSE reform and the Basel 3 Capital
Endgame remain the highest profile issues.
Financial
market participants continue to speculate on whether the Trump
administration will prioritize removing the GSEs from conservatorship. Senior
policymakers have indicated that privatizing the GSEs is not likely to be an
immediate priority for the administration.
- In remarks before the National Association
of Realtors, HFSC’s French Hill said: