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☆ Failure to raise U.S. debt ceiling would lead to 'economic and financial catastrophe,' Yellen says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The U.S. government risks "economic and financial catastrophe" if the House fails to pass a bill to raise the $31.4 trillion debt ceiling, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Monday. The Treasury Department under Yellen has taken several temporary measures to help the government avoid default. "And every responsible member of Congress must agree to raise the debt ceiling." The Treasury Secretary said the House has always fulfilled its duty to raise the limit though it has sometimes "gone up to the wire." House Speaker Kevin McCarthy announced that he will deliver an address on the debt ceiling Monday at 5:30 p.m.

☆ Consumer Financial Protection Bureau targets excessive credit card fees in new rule proposal
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON — The federal government's consumer protection watchdog proposed a new rule on Wednesday to ban excessive credit card late fees, potentially reducing them by as much as $9 billion per year. Congress banned exorbitant credit card fees under the Credit CARD Act in 2009, but an immunity provision instituted by the Federal Reserve Board of Governors enabled card companies to dodge enforcement standards, said Rohit Chopra, director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. "Today's proposed rule seeks to save families billions of dollars and ensure the credit card market is fair and competitive." The proposal follows a March 2022 report that showed credit card issuers charged consumers $12 billion in late fees in 2020. "Given their current practices, we expect that credit card issuers will hike fees, based on inflation, as limits continue to rise."

☆ Treasury tells Congress it will suspend some federal retirement funding after debt limit breach
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The U.S. Treasury will suspend full funding of a federal retirement program, the latest in a string of actions it has taken to prevent default after the government hit its debt ceiling, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told congressional leaders Tuesday. The Treasury is taking so-called extraordinary measures to keep paying its bills after it breached its $31.4 trillion borrowing limit Thursday. Lawmakers are trying to strike a deal to lift the U.S. borrowing limit and prevent a first-ever default on U.S. debt. Some members of the new Republican House majority have pushed to tie spending cuts to an increase in the borrowing limit. Yellen on Tuesday said interest-bearing securities for the Government Securities Investment Fund, or the so-called "G Fund," will be underfunded until the debt limit is increased or suspended.

☆ SEC fines Bloomberg $5 million for disclosure violations on fixed-income prices
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The Securities and Exchange Commission fined Bloomberg Finance LP $5 million to settle civil charges accusing the company of misleading customers on how it calculated the prices of certain securities, the agency said Monday. The action could have affected the price at which securities are offered or traded on the platform, the SEC said. Former New York mayor and one-time presidential candidate Mike Bloomberg owns parent company Bloomberg LP, a data and media company. The SEC said Bloomberg's customers, including mutual fund companies, used its prices to calculate valuations of their own holdings. The disclosure issue affected the prices of some government bonds, agency securities, corporate bonds, municipal bonds as well as securitized products, the SEC said.

☆ Yellen says Treasury is taking extraordinary measures to avoid default as U.S. hits debt limit
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen holds a news conference in the Cash Room at the U.S. Treasury Department in Washington, U.S. July 28, 2022. The Treasury Department started taking so-called extraordinary measures to keep paying the federal government's bills as the U.S. hit its debt limit Thursday, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said. The Treasury secretary told lawmakers Friday that she believes the extraordinary steps could allow the government to pay its obligations until early June. The Treasury secretary warned last week that the U.S. government would hit the statutory debt ceiling on Thursday, after which extraordinary measures would be taken to keep the government from defaulting on its debt obligations. The U.S. government has not defaulted on its debt, but the debt ceiling has been raised 22 times from 1997 to 2022, according to the Government Accountability Office.

☆ U.S. Chamber of Commerce threatens to sue the FTC over proposed ban on noncompete clauses
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Signage is seen on the Chamber Of Commerce Building in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, U.S., April 21, 2021. A major business advocacy group has pledged to sue the Federal Trade Commission if it acts on a proposal to ban noncompete clauses in worker contracts — an issue that has bipartisan support among lawmakers. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which represents some 3 million businesses, is prepared to sue if the FTC continues to push for a proposal that prohibits companies from imposing noncompete clauses on employees, President and CEO Suzanne P. Clark told reporters Thursday. The Chamber called the proposal "blatantly unlawful" and ignorant of established state laws where "noncompete agreements are an important tool in fostering innovation and preserving competition." Banning noncompete agreements is "clearly authority that (the FTC doesn't) have and no one has ever thought that they had," Bradley said.

The chair of the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives sits empty as the House embarks on another round of voting for a new House Speaker on the second day of the 118th Congress at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, U.S., January 4, 2023. The longer the infighting on Capitol Hill delays the election of a new House Speaker, the more havoc it will wreak on the federal government. While it doesn't necessarily pose an imminent threat to the U.S. economy, it paralyzes all action on the Hill. Without a speaker, the House can't vote on a rules package governing the new Congress. If the House does not pass rules by Jan. 13, committee staff could start to lose pay, according to guidance sent to those panels reported by Politico.

WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., lost a seventh vote for House speaker Thursday, despite conceding to several new demands from his far-right opponents. An eighth vote was expected, although there were few signs that McCarthy's fortunes would improve. "I think everyone in the conversation wants to find a solution," McCarthy said on his way into the House chamber for the vote. With 222 Republicans in the House, he can't afford to lose more than four votes. Ahead of Thursday's votes, Democratic Party leaders berated Republicans for the party's dysfunction, and emphasized the harm that going days without a House speaker was inflicting on the legislative branch and the nation.

The latest vote saw a core group of GOP holdouts nominate and vote for Florida Rep. Byron Donalds, a sophomore Republican lawmaker who on Tuesday had publicly shifted his support away from McCarthy. While the vote is still ongoing, enough Republicans have abandoned McCarthy to leave him shy of the 218 he needs to win the coveted seat. WASHINGTON — In the fourth vote in two days, Republican leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., again failed to secure enough support to win the U.S. House speakership. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) is seen at the US Capitol in Washington, DC on December 21, 2022. Kevin McCarthy will do a good job, and maybe even a GREAT JOB – JUST WATCH!"

☆ New bill will force Twitter, TikTok and other social media platforms to increase transparency by sharing internal data
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

A bipartisan group of senators introduced a bill on Wednesday aimed at increasing transparency for Twitter , Facebook and other social media companies as lawmakers debate whether to ban TikTok. The Platform Accountability and Transparency Act is intended to make the companies' internal data more accessible to the public by requiring the submission of necessary data to independent researchers. Under the proposal, social media companies would be compelled to provide internal, privacy-protected data to researchers who've been approved by the National Science Foundation, an independent agency. The bill protects researchers from legal liabilities associated with automatic data collection if certain privacy safeguards are followed. Earlier this month, lawmakers floated a bill to ban the popular social media platform TikTok in the U.S. after years of speculation about the Chinese government's influence on ByteDance, the China-based company that owns TikTok.

☆ White House and Congress prepare for possible visit from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks with U.S. President Joe Biden via phone, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, in Kyiv, Ukraine December 11, 2022. White House and congressional security officials were laying the groundwork for a possible visit Wednesday from Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelenskyy, five other sources familiar with the planning told NBC News. The Ukrainian president, who is currently the target of Russian forces amid its brutal assault on his country, could address lawmakers during a joint session of Congress in the House chamber, they said. U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., confirmed to NBC News that she invited Zelenskyy to D.C., but she wouldn't say whether he was coming. An official representing the Ukrainian embassy in Washington, D.C. told CNBC they are aware of reports but cannot confirm Zelenskyy's visit.

☆ Over 3,000 minor victims were targeted in ‘sextortion’ crimes in the past year, U.S. law enforcement says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Federal law enforcement officers are cracking down on a scheme that aims to extort sexual imagery from children and teens after a dramatic increase in incidents over the past year. Sometimes, a predator shares imagery regardless of whether a victim meets payment demands, according to federal officials. Law enforcement officials say prevention is the best weapon against sextortion. The sextortion cycle generally ends when a victim tells an adult or the offender is discovered by law enforcement. "We will continue to partner with federal, state and local law enforcement to protect children from sexual exploitation in all its despicable forms."

☆ Treasury's financial stability watchdog says fraud is rampant in crypto markets
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-16 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The crypto currency market is rife with fraud, failures to comply with existing laws and big swings in volatility, but the recent implosion of digital currency exchange FTX hasn't hampered the broader financial system, according to a report released Friday by Treasury's Financial Stability Oversight Committee. The committee, which was created after the financial crisis to identify looming risks to the financial system, reiterated its call for Congress to pass legislation that allows U.S. regulators to police spot markets for crypto assets that aren't securities. The group uses data from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Federal Trade Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission, among other agencies, to spotlight fraud in crypto. The committee warned that this could rapidly change if participants in the crypto and traditional financial systems continue to devise ways to overlap, therefore increasing the urgency for more regulatory oversight. Traditional banks, for instance, hold stablecoin as part of their reserve assets, retail investors are increasingly using leverage to trade crypto currencies and crypto has also become more widely available through some traditional financial service companies.

The Senate Banking Committee on Wednesday is holding a second day of hearings this week on the downfall of cryptocurrency exchange FTX, examining how the company's implosion could impact the nascent industry. Old school, old school." Bankman-Fried was charged by federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York for a wide variety of crimes including wire fraud, securities fraud and violating campaign finance regulations. Though Ray and Bankman-Fried won't be part of the Senate Banking hearing on Wednesday, four cryptocurrency experts will be testifying instead, including Kevin O'Leary, a longtime paid FTX spokesman. "In my opinion, it is the largest Ponzi scheme in history by an order of magnitude."

☆ Congress considers crypto consumer protection bill that Sam Bankman-Fried backed before FTX collapse
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-13 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The shocking collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX has increased the urgency in Congress to understand what went wrong and pass legislation to try to prevent another debacle that would affect hundreds of thousands of investors. One bill, the Digital Commodities Consumer Protection Act, introduced in August, gives the Commodity Futures Trading Commission more authority to regulate digital commodities like FTX. The bill arrived before FTX's collapse ignited fresh debate over how to protect consumers in the relatively young and untamed crypto industry. Bankman-Fried was charged in a U.S. indictment with eight criminal counts: conspiracy to commit wire fraud and securities fraud, individual charges of securities fraud and wire fraud, money laundering and conspiracy to avoid campaign finance regulations. Nor does it make the CFTC the 'primary' crypto regulator," Stabenow said during an agriculture committee hearing Dec. 1.

☆ SEC issues new guidance requiring companies to disclose cryptocurrency risks
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The Securities and Exchange Commission released new guidance Thursday, requiring companies that issue securities to disclose to investors their exposure and risk to the cryptocurrency market. On Wednesday, SEC Chair Gary Gensler fended off accusations that the agency has failed to prevent crypto firms from misusing customer funds. Gensler also said the SEC would take more enforcement actions if the firms fail to comply with existing rules. Under the new guidance, companies will have to include crypto asset holdings as well as their risk exposure to the FTX bankruptcy and other market developments in their public filings. The SEC's corporate finance division encouraged companies to adopt these recommendations as they prepare documents "that may not typically be subject to review by the Division before their use."

☆ U.S. lawmakers press federal banking regulators on the industry’s exposure to crypto after Alameda stake in bank comes to light
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Top Senate Democrats pressed key banking regulators on possible ties between the industry and digital currency exchanges following the bankruptcy of major cryptocurrency firm, FTX. "Banks' relationships with crypto firms raise questions about the safety and soundness of our banking system and highlight potential loopholes that crypto firms may try to exploit to gain further access." Silvergate Capital Corp., Provident Bancorp Inc., Metropolitan Commercial Bank, Signature Bank, Customers Bancorp Inc. are among several noted banks experiencing heightened volatility after the FTX failure. "Banks' relationships with crypto firms raise questions about the safety and soundness of our banking system and highlight potential loopholes that crypto firms may try to exploit to gain further access to banks," the senators wrote. To better understand the banking industry's exposure to crypto, the senators asked for responses to a roster of questions, including all business relationships between FTX, Alameda and Moonstone, by Dec. 21.

☆ Cryptocurrency firms need to 'come into compliance' with existing rules, SEC Chair Gary Gensler says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Gensler told Yahoo Finance in an interview that the SEC has brought more than 100 enforcement cases in the crypto space, directly challenging lawmakers' questions about the agency's oversight. "We're already suited up," Gensler told Yahoo Finance. The SEC chief said cryptocurrency firms should be held liable for compliance with existing rules. Gensler told Yahoo Finance that the SEC has successfully deterred other suspicious crypto firm activities. Gensler said the SEC would take more enforcement actions if cryptocurrency exchanges will not comply, but he did not elaborate on what those would be.

☆ Key White House economic advisor says U.S. economy is slowing, but resilient
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The November labor market report released Friday showed job growth was better than expected, as nonfarm payrolls increased by 263,000. He also pointed to slowing inflation as a positive sign for healthier economic growth. The improving labor market, combined with a 0.6% increase in average hourly earnings last month, has put pressure on the Fed to continue raising rates. Major U.S. stock indexes have struggled this week, in part due to concerns of a slowing economy and expectations of more rate increases ahead. "That's going be where we get our innovation and our productive capacity, beyond the next month or two."

☆ Senate Banking Chairman Brown to introduce bill closing 'shadow' banking loophole after Elon Musk says Twitter will process payments
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sherrod Brown will introduce a bill Tuesday that aims to close the so-called shadow banking loophole that allows retail and tech companies to offer banking services without the same stringent oversight as other financial institutions. Twitter is one of several non-bank companies that sought to enable banking services for users through state-chartered ILCs. Jack Dorsey, Musk's predecessor at Twitter, also was involved in financial services through his separate payments company Square. Other companies that have applied for ILC charters include eCommerce marketplace Rakuten, Ford Motor Company and financial services firm Edward Jones . The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation approved ILC deposit insurance applications for Square and Nelnet, a student financial services company, in 2020.

☆ Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried met with top officials at the CFTC more than 10 times over the past 14 months, says chairman Rostin Behnam
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON — The founder and former CEO of failed cryptocurrency exchange Sam Bankman-Fried met with high-level officials at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission more than 10 times over the past 14 months, including with CFTC Chairman Rostin Behnam. The proposed change was still pending approval by the time FTX filed for bankruptcy earlier this month. Over the past 14 months, we met 10 times in the CFTC office at their request all in relation to this (derivatives clearing organization); this clearinghouse application," Behnam told committee chair Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich. Later in the hearing, Behnam told Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., that emails were also exchanged between the parties. And I felt I needed to be engaged as the chairman of the agency that met directly with FTX and Mr.

☆ China is a growing threat to national security, U.S. companies and American workers, U.S. Commerce Secretary Raimondo says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

It's now clear to U.S. officials that China, once considered a possible economic and political ally, has become an emerging threat to national security, U.S. companies and American workers, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said Wednesday. "China's reprioritization away from economic growth toward national security and its assertive military behavior means that we have to rethink how we protect our national security interests while also promoting our interests in trade and investment." "Probably most disturbingly is they're accelerating their efforts to fuse economic and technology policies with their military ambitions," Raimondo said. "China today poses a set of growing challenges to our national security," she said. But in areas that have no potential to undermine our interests, our values, our national security, our economic security, and at the same time using every tool in our toolbox to protect our companies and counter unfair economic practices," Raimondo said.

☆ Sen. Sherrod Brown calls on Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to help rein in cryptocurrency firms after FTX collapse
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Bahamas-based crypto exchange FTX filed for bankruptcy in the U.S. on Nov. 11, 2022, seeking court protection as it looks for a way to return money to users. Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sherrod Brown urged Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Wednesday to work with lawmakers and financial regulators to help write legislation to rein in the cryptocurrency market in the wake of the collapse of crypto exchange FTX. Brown sent the letter the day before Congress holds its first hearing on FTX's collapse. Brown encouraged partnership between Congress, Treasury and the White House, even referencing Treasury's coordination with the President's Working Group on Financial Markets. "Congress and the financial regulators must work to get all of this right.

☆ Alabama man charged in alleged scheme to violate U.S. sanctions on Iran
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The Justice Department has charged an Alabama man with violating U.S. sanctions, alleging he schemed to sell oil and gas industry equipment in Iran. Hunt is a naturalized citizen born in Iran, according to the indictment. He is also known as Abdolrahman Hantoosh, Rahman Hantoosh and Rahman Natoosh. Former President Bill Clinton signed an executive order in 1995 prohibiting certain transactions related to Iran's petroleum resources. Every president has extended the order since 1997, according to the indictment.

☆ Treasury Department release guidelines for Russian oil transport ahead of planned price cap
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The Treasury Department issued new guidance Tuesday about policies on the maritime transport of Russian oil ahead of a planned price cap in early December. Shipping and customs brokering are among several services covered under an executive order addressing the transport of Russian oil by sea. Russian oil output is expected to fall to 1.4 million barrels a day by next year. The Price Cap Coalition has not yet decided on how much to cap the price of oil, but the cap will be set after a "technical exercise" conducted by the coalition, according to the guidance. The decision will be made "in the coming days," a senior Treasury official said.

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