The reports suggest that the upward trend in nonbank lending will continue. There are a variety of reasons for this; e.g., banks are subject to much heavier regulation and regulatory costs, and nonbank lenders reduced their own costs significantly through use of technology, to name a couple.

In light of that trend, the question for regulators and legislators is how to respond. They could (i) decrease regulation of banks that are viewed as unduly costly and that make banks less…

The SEC should be careful not to suggest that ESG investing is inherently a good strategy. Even a quick internet search on the topic suggests that viewpoints on the past investment success of ESG funds differ markedly. Further, past performance is no guarantee of future results. The SEC should take care not to put itself in the business of providing strategic investment advice.

The SEC just adopted Regulation Best Interest, which imposes a significant suitability obligation (and related potential legal liability) on a broker-dealer that sells securities to the most sophisticated natural persons; e.g., Warren Buffett. It is therefore not at all surprising that small investors are not given a chance to invest in private placements because it is too expensive to deal with such investors as compared to larger investors. See .

One can either have rules that…

Existing FINRA generally prohibits an AP from borrowing money from (or lending money to) a customer. This rule proposal further addresses the concern that an AP may attempt to manipulate a customer, particularly a senior customer. On the one hand, the rule proposal would require firms to make a judgment that seems well outside the normal course of the securities business; on the other hand, firms do routinely have to determine whether a customer is making a genuinely independent decision.…