Commissioner Bart Chilton delivered a speech to the Globalization and Energy Markets: Investment and Commodity Price Cycles Conference at Rice University, Houston, Texas. Commissioner Chilton begins by discussing the "sin-orgy" culprits (regulators and, what Chilton refers to as, the captains of Wall Street) responsible for the financial meltdown. Chilton then goes on to discuss the following topics: Dodd-Frank, and the three main goals of the CFTC; Position Limits, and the problem with Massive Passives (i.e., traders with a long-term passive investment strategy); Provisions to place

SIFMA submitted the attached comments to the French Minister of the Economy, Finance and Industry, in which it urged a postponement of the implementation date of December 1, 2012 to impose the newly enacted French Financial Transaction Tax (FFTT) on French American Depositary Receipts (ADRs). Click hereto view letter in full (links externally to SIFMA website).See alsonews story with related letter to Treasury Secretary Geithner.

The U.S. federal banking agencies issued three notices of proposed rulemaking in June that would revise and replace the current regulatory capital rules. The original proposals had suggested an effective date of January 1, 2013. Many industry participants have expressed concern that they may be subject to a final regulatory capital rule on January 1, 2013, without sufficient time to understand the rule or to make necessary systems changes. In light of the volume of comments received and the wide range of views expressed during the comment period, the agencies' new proposals do not project that

The International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) and the Association for Financial Markets in Europe (AFME) submitted a joint letter to the European Commission asserting that the EU's interpretation of the international Basel standards would "materially increase" regulatory capital requirements for European institutions, both as clearing members and as clearing customers. Regulators are transcribing the Basel III framework into European law through the fourth Capital Requirements Regulation and Directive. However, ISDA and AFME argue that the European capital rules are inconsistent

Federal Reserve Governor Elizabeth Duke gave a speech before the Community Bankers symposium discussing the impact that new mortgage lending regulations and the Basel III capital proposals will have on community banks. Duke noted that while the Fed's analysis indicated the vast majority of community banks would already meet the new capital standards, she is concerned that the "totality of new mortgage lending regulations might still seriously impair the ability of community banks to continue to offer their traditional mortgage products." Duke divided the potential burden of these mortgage