FINRA notified members that it will assess $8,935,500 to fund the annual budget of the Governmental Accounting Standards Board ("GASB"). Starting in April 2019, the assessments will be collected quarterly ($2,233,875/quarter) from member firms that report trades to the MSRB.

Pursuant to Executive Order 13851, OFAC designated the son of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega and his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo, and a Nicaraguan bank. According to OFAC, the designated individual and bank support a regime whose actions have led to the death of over 300 individuals, the injury of approximately 2,000 and approximately 42,000 Nicaraguans seeking refuge in Costa Rica. U.S. Treasury Under Secretary Sigal Mandelker stated: "The corrupt Ortega regime has ignored the Nicaraguan people’s calls for reform, including the freeing of all political prisoners, and early

In concurrent actions, OFAC sanctioned the Central Bank of Venezuela and its director, as well as the son of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega and a Nicaraguan bank owned by Venezuela's state-owned oil company, Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A. ("PdVSA"). Pursuant to Executive Order 13850, OFAC designated the Central Bank of Venezuela. According to Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin, the move was designed "to prevent [the bank] from being used as a tool of the illegitimate Maduro regime." OFAC also designated Central Bank of Venezuela Director Iliana Josefa Ruzza Terán, pursuant to Executive

At a CFTC Energy and Environmental Markets Advisory Committee meeting, members debated the impact that the Supplemental Leverage Ratio ("SLR") imposed by prudential regulators may have on the "provision of clearing services for energy derivatives transactions." CFTC Chair J. Christopher Giancarlo criticized application of the SLR (a capital requirement for banks) to swap clearing customer margin, arguing that it "reflects a flawed understanding" of central counterparty clearing. He added that the implementation of the SLR is "biased against derivatives," as it does not take into consideration

The American Bankers Association (the "ABA") expressed support for the Secure and Fair Enforcement Banking Act ("SAFE Banking Act") of 2019. In a letter to Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and Senator Cory Gardner (R-CO), the ABA stated that the SAFE Banking Act takes a critical step toward enabling financial services for cannabis-related businesses by specifying that proceeds from "legitimate cannabis business" would not be illegal pursuant to federal money laundering statutes. The ABA noted that, as the legal state-cannabis industry expands, the "indirect" connections to cannabis revenues will