The Delta Strategy Group summary of the hearing provides useful guidance on the SEC's likely activities during the coming days before the President-Elect assumes office. For example, the summary indicates that Chair White would press ahead with security-based swap rules. It is unlikely, however, that Chair White would try to force through other politically controversial measures, like the rule proposal concerning disclosures of political contributions (see our previous story, "").

At…

The Minneapolis Fed's Plan would attempt to end the problem of too-big-to-fail by driving every large bank out of business through the imposition of massive capital charges. Since putting large banks out of business would cause borrowing activity to move from banks to non-banks, the plan would then impose a tax on large non-bank lenders that effectively would force every large non-bank lender to either become a bank (presumably a small bank, since large banks would be compelled to close) or…

Chair White's resignation was to be expected. Her departure will allow the incoming President to appoint three new SEC commissioners, two of whom will be Republicans. The new chair will be either standing Commissioner Michael S. Piwowar or one of the two new Republican appointees.

A number of significant proposed rulemakings have yet to be considered by the SEC. Leaving aside the security-based swaps rules, the most important incomplete measures, such as required disclosures of…

The contrast between the SEC's take and that of banking regulators on FinTech is significant. The SEC's philosophy, as expressed by two of its three commissioners, is to encourage growth by clarifying regulatory requirements. Although the SEC wishes to serve as the "intake center" for the sharing of information, it does not seek to act as an arbiter of what FinTech products may be made available to the public. On the other hand,  that may be raised whenever they find themselves…