Sky Blog
The enactment of the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act established the nation’s first federal prudential framework for “payment stablecoins,” mandating 1:1 reserve backing and explicitly prohibiting issuers from paying interest.[1] This legislative bargain was …
At the end of December, the FDIC issued two releases related to the resolution of failed banks. The December 31 release provided an update about the FDIC rule on insured depository institution (“IDI”) resolution plans (the “IDI plan rule”).[1] The …
The environment has never been more favorable for existing banking organizations launching a digital asset business and those Fintech and other nonbank companies considering acquiring or chartering a full-service or limited-purpose bank in order to operate a digital asset business. …
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 …
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 …
On October 24, 2025, the Federal Reserve Board issued two proposals to revise its supervisory stress testing framework.
On September 16, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit affirmed the dismissal of insider trading claims against Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs (the “Banks”) following the March 2021 collapse of Archegos Capital Management. Plaintiffs—investors in seven …
The Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) represents one of the European Union’s most ambitious attempts to hold businesses accountable for their global impact. The directive establishes a corporate due diligence duty with core elements focused on identifying and addressing …
In May 2024, a company in California suddenly made headlines across the financial press. Synapse Financial Technologies, once hailed as a pioneer in the next wave of financial innovation, filed for bankruptcy. The company had promised to revolutionize banking …
There is a venerable history of interdependence between sovereign debt and the financial system. The national banking system in the U.S. arose as a solution to fiscal challenges the Union government faced in the Civil War. A key requirement for …
In July 2025, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act (H.R. 1919), legislation prohibiting the Federal Reserve from issuing a central bank digital currency (CBDC) directly to the public.¹ Days later, President Trump signed the Guiding …
In a significant step towards modernizing Bank Secrecy Act compliance, FinCEN and certain banking agencies are providing flexibility in “know your customer” requirements for banks.
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), …
Climate change has become a central topic of discussion among banking regulators and policymakers. While many policymakers focus primarily on addressing the environmental externalities associated with carbon emissions, banking regulators confront a unique set of challenges that the current regulatory …
The U.S. Federal Reserve is 12 banks, not one. Each serves a different region of the country and brings insights from that region into the process of formulating nationwide monetary policy. Each also provides a variety of banking services to …
Venture capital contracting is the function of a complex private-ordering exercise through which venture capitalists and entrepreneurs address the challenges of financing high-tech firms (Kaplan & Strömberg, 2004). Throughout decades of iterative practice, U.S. venture capital contracts have …
The OCC has reversed recent changes to its bank merger policies through an interim final rule. Our client update is a refresher on the new state of play for Bank Merger Act applications to the OCC, which is a return …
In April 2025, the landscape of U.S. crypto regulation shifted significantly. Three of the country’s principal bank regulators – the Federal Reserve, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) – jointly …
Over recent decades, the massive globalization of finance has led many observers to expect widespread harmonization of nations’ financial regulations. Yet, while there has been a remarkable degree of harmonization in some areas, at least at the regional level, considerable …