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The US Treasury has announced that it will ask for public opinion on improvements to the US regulatory structure. Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson will seek market input as a blueprint for an improved US financial regulatory structure is prepared.
Last June the US Treasury announced that it would review and recommend improvements to the regulatory structure as part of Paulson’s commitment to strengthen the US financial markets' ability to compete in the global economy. The blueprint, set for release early next year, will seek a more effective regulatory structure designed to adapt to the US marketplace while improving oversight. The Treasury intends to continue to evaluate the US regulatory structure with the stated objectives of improving efficiency, reducing overlap, strengthening consumer and investor protection and ensuring that financial institutions have the ability to keep pace with evolving markets.
The review of the financial regulatory structure will focus on all types of financial institutions: commercial banks and other insured depository institutions; insurance companies; securities firms; futures firms; and other types of financial intermediaries. Public comment is requested on topics including overlapping state and federal regulation, ways to improve market discipline and consumer protection, the strengths and weaknesses of having multiple regulators and multiple federal charters for financial institutions.
Amongst the questions asked are: Should the US have a single unified regulatory body, such as the UK, Japan and Germany? What should be the role of the individual US states? Is central bank regulatory authority necessary for the development of monetary policy? Should there be a uniform set of basic principles of regulation that were agreed upon and adopted by each financial services regulator?
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