News from the economy, politics and the financial markets
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CFPB Publishes Eight Notices on Reinstating OMB Requirements
On December 9 and 10, the CFPB published eight notices in the Federal Register requesting comment on reinstating OMB approvals for existing information collections. The CFPB invited comments as to whether the collection of information is necessary. It also sought input on the burden imposed by such collection....By: Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP
When Regulatory Relief is not Regulatory Relief
There’s a lot of things in the world of bureaucratic regulations that don’t appear to make sense and can be downright funny and frustrating at times. For example, when I was in the state senate in Connecticut the Department of Information Technology was known as “DOIT”. I thought, “What a great name for the department that would help legislators understand the answers to important budgetary questions.”...By: GeoDataVision
District Court Lifts Stay in Alleged Predatory Financing Case Brought by CFPB
On December 3, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas lifted a stay in a case brought by the CFPB against several affiliated defendants, following a lapse in federal appropriations that had stayed proceedings. The notice highlighted that, following the government reopening, the court reinstated the case and extended the deadline for the parties’ joint status report on settlement negotiations to December 9....By: Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP
SGX-Nasdaq Dual Listing Framework - Opening New Doors for East Asian Companies
On November 19, 2025, Singapore Exchange ("SGX") and Nasdaq announced a proposed "Global Listing Board" framework enabling companies to file a single prospectus acceptable to both Singapore and U.S. regulators....By: Sullivan & Worcester
How Will the Cannabis World Look When Marijuana Is Rescheduled? (UPDATED)
A few weeks ago, someone at a holiday party asked “Whitt, why doesn’t Budding Trends take on the weighty legal issues of the day and instead resort to cheap pop culture references and puns?” I thought about responding with a quote from “Run Like an Antelope” but then it hit me: Maybe we should give some thought to a more high-minded discussion about the practical implications of marijuana rescheduling....By: Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP
Weekly Blockchain Monitor - December 2025 #2
Payments and Digital Assets Companies Announce Stablecoin Initiatives - A leading global payments network and a stablecoin infrastructure platform recently announced a partnership focused on cross-border stablecoin-based payment settlement and digital asset treasury management....By: BakerHostetler
Meet the New Disruptor in the Music Business: The Family Office
This is a new ongoing series about the business of music with a SPIN twist. There’s a new headliner in the music business, and it’s not on stage. It’s in the wings, in a tailored suit, with a checkbook bigger than the tour budget. Originally Published by Spin on - November 19, 2025....By: Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP
New York Updates UCC Law to Address Emerging Technologies in Commercial Transactions
On December 5, the governor of New York signed into law an act to amend the state’s UCC, aiming to address emerging technologies and update rules for commercial transactions involving virtual currencies. The legislation updates rules regarding control of electronic documents of title, specifying that a person has control if an electronic copy or record establishes the person as the recipient. The act also clarifies that purchasers have control of electronic copies of records evidencing chattel...By: Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP
Minnesota Appeals Court Affirms Broad Application of Debt Collection Licensing Requirements
Recently, the Minnesota Court of Appeals affirmed a cease-and-desist order against a Utah-based company for allegedly conducting unlicensed debt collection in Minnesota. The court held Minnesota’s collection agency statutes apply broadly and require licensure for any entity that seeks to collect payment on behalf of others, even if the company is out-of-state collecting on Minnesota-based claims....By: Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP
Final Texts for PSD3 and PSR Awaited as European Parliament and Council of EU Announce Provisional Political Agreement
On 27 November 2025, the European Parliament and the Council of the EU announced that they have reached a provisional political agreement on the texts of the proposed Directive on payment services and electronic money services (PSD3) and Regulation on payment services in the EU (PSR). Subject to completion of work on the technical elements of the payments package, payment service providers (PSPs) should expect to see the final texts in the coming weeks....By: Hogan Lovells
New York Enacts Law Adding Civil Penalties for Unlicensed Acts
On December 5, the governor of New York signed into law new provisions to amend the state’s financial services laws in connection with engaging in certain activities without a license. Specifically, the amendment adds § 408-a, “Civil penalty,” which defines prohibited unlicensed acts under the banking law and its regulations and sets forth specific penalties....By: Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP
Israel Securities Authority Regulates Online Advertising: Mutual Funds, Likes, Influencers, and Everything in Between
The Israel Securities Authority published a new staff position recently on the regulation of advertising in digital space (including on social networks), focusing on advertising relating to mutual funds. The staff position seeks to bridge the gap between the law and the dynamic reality in today’s digital age, and focuses on regulating ongoing online activities and activities with external parties....By: Barnea Jaffa Lande & Co.
OCC Confirms National Banks May Engage in ‘Riskless Principal’ Digital Assets Transactions
On December 9, the OCC issued an interpretive letter, confirming that national banks may engage in “riskless principal” transactions involving digital assets as part of the business of banking. The OCC stated these transactions involve a bank acting as principal in a digital asset transaction with one customer while simultaneously entering into an offsetting transaction with another customer, serving as an intermediary and not holding digital assets in inventory....By: Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP
OCC Head Speaks How Banks Could Embrace Digital Assets
On December 8, the OCC published a speech made by Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan V. Gould at an industry policy summit on his commitment to chartering new banks, aligning the importance of de novo chartering with novel technologies like digital assets. From 2011 through 2024, the OCC received fewer than four charter applications annually. However, in 2025, the agency reported receiving 14 de novo charter applications, including applications from entities involved in digital or fintech...By: Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP
FinCEN Reports Ransomware Payments Exceeded $2.1B From 2022 to 2024
On December 4, FinCEN released a financial trend analysis showing that reported ransomware payments in BSA data totaled more than $2.1 billion between January 2022 and December 2024. FinCEN received 7,395 BSA reports related to 4,194 ransomware incidents during this period. The report found ransomware incidents and payments peaked in 2023, with 1,512 incidents and $1.1 billion in payments — a 77 percent increase in total payments from the previous year. By comparison, the report noted that, from...By: Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP
FinCEN Fines Virtual Currency Platform $3.5M for BSA Violations Tied to Illicit Activity
On December 9, FinCEN announced a consent order levying a $3.5 million civil money penalty against a peer-to-peer virtual currency trading platform for willful BSA violations. FinCEN alleged the company facilitated more than $500 million in suspicious transactions involving illicit actors and high-risk jurisdictions, including individuals from Iran, North Korea, and Venezuela....By: Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP
Democratic Senators Raise Concerns Over Potential Mortgage Market Disruption if CFPB is Shuttered
On December 3, Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Raphael Warnock (D-GA), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), and Andy Kim (D-NJ) published a letter to CFPB Acting Director Russell Vought expressing concern that efforts to close the agency could disrupt the U.S. mortgage market and harm homebuyers. The letter cited the Bureau’s central role as the primary regulator of the consumer mortgage market and its responsibility for publishing average prime offer rates (APOR) tables and maintaining rules that underpin...By: Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP
Court Approves Joint Motion to Reduce CFPB’s $5M Settlement With Student Loan Trusts and Servicer
On December 8, a judge in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania granted a joint motion filed by the CFPB and parties to a student loan enforcement action to modify previously proposed stipulated judgments involving a Pennsylvania-based student loan servicer and 15 student loan trusts, significantly reducing the scope and monetary relief of a settlement first proposed in May 2024 (covered by InfoBytes here). The original proposed orders would have required the student...By: Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP
Court Grants Former Fed Officials’ Motion for Leave to File Amici Curiae Brief in Support of CFPB Union, CFPB Responds to Motion to Clarify
On December 5, former Fed officials moved for leave to file a brief as amici curiae in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in support of the CFPB union’s motion to clarify the term “combined earnings” as recently addressed by the DOJ’s Office of Legal Counsel (OLC). The meaning of the term has been a central part of ongoing litigation between the union representing CFPB employees and the Trump administration concerning the administration’s plans for the agency, as the CFPB is...By: Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP
Nonprofit Groups Challenge CFPB’s Refusal to Request Funding From the Fed
On December 5, a coalition of nonprofit organizations filed a complaint seeking declaratory and injunctive relief in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California against the CFPB and Acting Director Russell Vought. The plaintiffs alleged the CFPB’s refusal to request funds from the Fed, as contemplated by 12 U.S.C. § 5497, violates the APA. The complaint asserted the Dodd-Frank Act obliges the CFPB director to request the funds “reasonably necessary” to execute the agency’s...By: Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP
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