The Federal Reserve Board has issued a final rule that amending Regulation C to raise the asset size exemption threshold to $40 million for depository institutions that are required to report data under the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA). Date January 26, 2011 Cross References OCC 2011-5 Home Mortgage Disclosure, 75 Fed. Reg. 80675 (Dec. 23, 2010)

The federal bank, thrift and credit union regulatory agencies, along with the Farm Credit Administration, announced that the Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System and Registry will begin accepting federal registrations on Jan. 31, 2011. Under the Secure and Fair Enforcement for Mortgage Licensing Act (S.A.F.E. Act) and the agencies' final rules, residential mortgage loan originators employed by banks, savings associations, credit unions, or Farm Credit System institutions must register with the registry, obtain a unique identifier from the registry, and maintain their registrations. Date

HM Treasury, the Financial Services Authority and the Bank of England have produced a joint report of their views on the European Commission consultation document on Credit Rating Agencies. Amongst other issues, the authorities consider that the Commission should look to the measures taken in other jurisdictions to reduce overreliance on credit ratings, and seek to improve competition in the industry whilst ensuring that ratings are of a high quality. Date January 31, 2011

Commentary Prof. Craig Pirrong commenting on efforts by Congress and the CFTC to deal with the problem of manipulation, states that "[t]he problem is that instead of taking a new, economics-based approach to the problem, Congress keeps returning to the vapory SEC 10(b)-5 "manipulative contrivance or device" standard, like a dog returning to its own vomit." He criticizes the CFTC position limit proposal because it (a) identified a way in which large positions could cause unwarranted fluctuations, and (b) imposed limits that were completely unnecessary to address the very problem the CFTC

The NYSE issued an information memo to remind firms that "promoting or participating in certain gambling activities" is prohibited on any NYSE-controlled premises, including the trading floor. Document Number NYSE Information Memo 11-04 Date January 26, 2011 Cross References NYSE Rule 476(a)(7)