Bank Lobbyists Writing the Rules for Wall Street

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May 24, 2013

It might be logical to assume that lawmakers are the ones who make laws, but bank lobbyists are playing a larger role in writing financial regulations, according to an article in The New York Times.

The article describes a recent bill that would exempt some types of trades from new regulation.

In a sign of Wall Street’s resurgent influence in Washington, Citigroup’s recommendations were reflected in more than 70 lines of the House committee’s 85-line bill. Two crucial paragraphs, prepared by Citigroup in conjunction with other Wall Street banks, were copied nearly word for word. (Lawmakers changed two words to make them plural.)

Industry lobbyists have their work cut out for them after the passage of Dodd-Frank in 2010, which introduced volumes of new regulations in an effort to overhaul the financial system after the collapse. In addition to helping to write regulations, lobbyists are stepping up their political contributions to both sides of the aisle.

And as its lobbying campaign steps up, the financial industry has doubled its already considerable giving to political causes. The lawmakers who this month supported the bills championed by Wall Street received twice as much in contributions from financial institutions compared with those who opposed them, according to an analysis of campaign finance records performed by MapLight, a nonprofit group.

Read more about the involvement of lobbyists in regulation writing at The New York Times.

Topics: Financial Sector

Related Content: Conflicts of Interest, Financial Oversight, Lobbying

Authors: Andre Francisco

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