Sky Blog
On November 18, 2025, the Federal Reserve released a Statement of Supervisory Operating Principles that sets out changes to how Federal Reserve examiners should supervise banking organizations. The Statement translates Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman’s stated priorities into concrete …
On November 5, 2025, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the “FRB”) adopted, by a six-to-one vote (with Governor Michael Barr dissenting), a set of revisions to the supervisory ratings system applicable to holding companies of large …
Following the 2007-08 Global Financial Crisis, regulators around the world sought to design a new framework that would result in “bail-ins” instead of “bailouts” of large financial institutions. One important tool in that framework was a debt-equity hybrid instrument: contingent …
Insiders such as executives, directors, and large shareholders often use company stock as collateral for personal loans. This practice is widespread but lightly regulated, and to many it has long seemed a harmless perk of wealth and a private decision …
In many economic settings, gatekeepers play a central role. For example, auditors verify public firms’ financial statements, lawyers sign off on transactions by providing legal opinions, and bank regulators assess whether banks are financially sound. Gatekeepers influence the behavior of …
On October 15, Travis Hill, Acting Chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (who has been nominated to permanently lead the agency) delivered a speech titled “Resolution Readiness and Lessons Learned from Recent Large Bank Failures” at the EU Single …
Artificial intelligence (AI) poses a clear and present danger to our money and our markets. With AI, bad actors and rogue nations can readily and cheaply engage in market manipulation, financial misinformation, and regulatory misconduct that threaten the stability, integrity, …
The US is the world’s largest private credit market, tripling in size since 2010 (estimated to be around US$1.5 trillion today) and currently more than twice the size of Europe’s market (approximately US$500 billion-US$1 trillion), according to Barings’ report, Direct …
On September 19, 2025, the US Department of the Treasury (Treasury) issued an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM), seeking public comment related to its implementation of the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins Act (the GENIUS Act), …
On October 24, 2025, the Federal Reserve Board issued two proposals to revise its supervisory stress testing framework.
On October 15, Travis Hill, Acting Chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (who has been nominated to permanently lead the agency) delivered a speech titled “Resolution Readiness and Lessons Learned from Recent Large Bank Failures” at the EU Single …
Banks and other corporations have been exploring green financing as a way to implement ESG business projects. Green loans and sustainability-linked loans (“SLLs”) are the major types of such financing. The former require the use of borrowed proceeds for green …
The U.S. Supreme Court’s Citizens United v. FEC decision, along with the SpeechNow.org v. FEC court decision, reshaped the landscape of political contributions. By striking down limits on independent expenditures, these rulings opened the door to a new, opaque channel …
Sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) are now central to how nations stabilize fiscal balances, diversify assets, and project financial influence. Norway’s oil fund, Singapore’s Temasek, and the Gulf states’ investment vehicles all serve as stabilizers and strategic tools in global markets. …
On October 7, 2025, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (the “agencies”) jointly issued a notice of proposed rulemaking (“NPR”)[1] that would codify the removal of reputation risk from the agencies’ …
The backlash against environmental, social, and governance (“ESG”) investing has been swift and fierce. More than 20 U.S. states have passed laws or taken administrative action targeting ESG considerations in asset management. Flows into ESG funds have slowed, and for …
The convergence of emerging financial technologies and traditional diplomatic relations has created novel challenges for legal frameworks governing digital asset regulation and conflicts of interest in government. Recent developments involving the Trump administration, United Arab Emirates (UAE) investment entities, and …
President Trump’s August 7, 2025 retirement plan Executive Order underscores the administration’s objective to make alternative assets available to defined-contribution plan participants. Below, we identify four steps the Department of Labor and the Securities and Exchange Commission should prioritize to …