ISDA urged the European Commission ("Commission") and the European Securities Authorities ("ESA") to extend certain derogations relating to clearing and margin. ISDA said the derogations remain valid and have yet to be addressed. In a letter to the Commission and ESA, ISDA lauded the European Securities and Markets Authority's Final Report, which proposed an extension until December 21, 2020 of the equivalent derogations under the separate clearing regulatory technical standards ("RTS"). ISDA also urged the Commission and the ESA to extend a time-limited derogation under Article 38 of the

FINRA Executive Vice President Richard W. Berry highlighted steps the organization is taking to address unpaid awards. Following critical statements by SEC Chair Jay Clayton and SEC Commissioner Kara M. Stein as to the difficulties that investors have in collecting arbitration awards, Mr. Berry said that FINRA's primary role with regard to arbitration is to administer cases. He acknowledged that roughly a third of the awards go unpaid. According to Mr. Berry, FINRA is taking a variety of steps to confront unpaid awards, including: implementing regulatory measures to pinpoint and remove bad

The Managed Funds Association ("MFA") hired Mark Epley to serve as executive vice president and general counsel. He begins his new position on February 19, 2019. Mr. Epley is currently general counsel and senior advisor to the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives.

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Representative Maxine Waters (D-CA), along with various other Representatives, requested a written commitment from newly confirmed Consumer of Financial Protection Bureau ("CFPB") Director Kathy Kraninger to ensure that the CFPB will fulfill "its explicit statutory purpose and mandates by resuming a consistent supervisory role over consumer protection laws, including the Military Lending Act, for the most robust and efficient protection of servicemembers and their families." The U.S. House of Representatives stated that servicemembers deserve to have their rights upheld through "strong