Event Summary

The Shadow Financial Regulatory Committee (SFRC), an independent group of experts sponsored by AEI, released its latest findings at a press luncheon on Monday. Despite the Securities and Exchange Commission's abandonment of Chairman Mary Shapiro's proposed regulations on money market mutual funds, SFRC members voiced their support for Shapiro's efforts and suggested additional regulations. Franklin Edwards of Columbia University outlined the SFRC's proposed regulatory reforms and discussed the impacts of accepting and abandoning such reforms.

Robert Eisenbeis of Cumberland Advisors then presented the SFRC's proposed London Inter-Bank Offered Rate (LIBOR) reforms in light of Barclays Bank's recent settlement over the manipulation of its LIBOR submissions to the British Bankers' Association. Eisenbeis emphasized that the manipulation of the LIBOR index has gone on for too long, stressing that the banking industry should take a leading role in creating a credible index.

Finally, Cathy Schrand of the University of Pennsylvania discussed how the Dodd-Frank Act of 2010 restricts the Securities and Exchange Commission's authority by mandating disclosures that have no clear correlation to either financial reform or consumer protection. Schrand concluded that such disclosures hurt private companies in that the benefits of the disclosures fail to outweigh their costs.
-- Emily Rapp

Event Description

The Shadow Financial Regulatory Committee (SFRC) is a group of publicly recognized independent experts on the financial services industry — including experts in banking, insurance and securities — who meet regularly to study and critique regulatory policies affecting this sector of the economy. During closed sessions before the luncheon, committee members will discuss the latest in financial regulation issues, including recent Libor abuse, the application of fair value accounting to bank balance sheets, government-sponsored enterprise and Securities Exchange Commission disclosure issues, the Dodd-Frank Act and the impacts of amending Glass-Steagall, breaking up large banks and derivatives regulation. In a briefing following the sessions, SFRC members will present the adopted policy statements and answer related questions.

If you are unable to attend, we welcome you to watch the event live on this page. Full video will be posted within 24 hours.