Cabinet News & Views

In This Issue ...

Good ol' Punxsutawney Phil woke up and saw his shadow this morning, which, legend (and history since 1887!) tells us, means six more weeks of winter. But in true DC fashion, a stuffed groundhog, Potomac Phil, didn't see his shadow at the Dupont Circle fountain, suggesting an early spring.

Hard to imagine a disagreement in Washington!

Groundhog Day fun aside, we don't need either Phil to tell us that a shadow continues to hang over crypto assets, and the Federal Reserve Board has had lots to say about that in recent days.

And speaking of weather and climate, we've included two very timely items written for our sister publication, Cadwalader Climate, in today's newsletter.

As always, we look forward to hearing from you. Please drop me a here if there are any topics covered this week that raise some questions.

Daniel Meade
Editor, Cabinet News and Views

FRB Issues Policy Statement on Permissible Activities of State Member Banks While Denying Uninsured Crypto-focused Bank’s Membership Application

By Daniel Meade

Partner | Financial Regulation

By Rachel Rodman

Partner | Consumer Financial Services Enforcement and Litigation

By Mercedes Kelley Tunstall

Partner | Financial Regulation

Three coordinated efforts by the Federal Reserve Board make clear that the FRB believes the risks associated with crypto-asset related activities are not appropriate for state member banks as principal.

By Michael Ena

Counsel | Financial Services

On January 26, the International Swaps and Derivatives Association, Inc. published the ISDA Digital Asset Derivatives Definitions. The Definitions are intended for documenting privately negotiated derivatives transactions referencing digital assets based on the distributed ledger or similar technology using standard ISDA documentation architecture.

New FCA Consumer Duty of Care

By Alix Prentice

Partner | Financial Regulation

UK firms manufacturing financial products that reach retail customers are facing a significant deadline this April to conform those products to meet the new consumer duty.

By Jason M. Halper

Partner | Global Litigation

By Sara Bussiere

Special Counsel | Global Litigation

On January 2, the New York City Comptroller, Brad Lander, the NYC Employees’ Retirement System, the NYC Teachers’ Retirement System, and the NYC Board of Education Retirement System announced that they had submitted shareholder proposals to three U.S. banks and one Canadian bank. The proposals, addressed to Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase and Royal Bank of Canada, seek to require the banks to disclose their absolute greenhouse gas (GhG) emissions targets for 2030.

By Jason M. Halper

Partner | Global Litigation

By Jayshree Balakrishnan

Law Clerk | Global Litigation

Environmental advocacy group As You Sow has sent climate-focused shareholder resolutions to five major U.S. banks. The resolutions request that the banks disclose their climate transition plans for meeting financed emissions reduction targets, “including the specific measures and policies to be implemented, reductions to be achieved by such measures and policies, and timelines for implementation and associated emission reductions.”

We are delighted to announce the arrival of partners Ronald Lovelace, Patrick Yingling, Jared Zajac and Joseph Polonsky, substantially enhancing the firm’s leveraged finance and private credit capabilities.