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3/19/2020

Joint Statement on the U.S. – EU Financial Regulatory Forum | U.S. Department of the Treasury

Joint Statement on the U.S. – EU Financial Regulatory Forum
February 19, 2020

Washington, DC — U.S. and EU participants in the U.S. – EU Financial Regulatory Forum met on
February 11-12, 2020 in Washington to exchange views on financial regulatory developments as
part of their ongoing regulatory dialogue.
EU participants included representatives of the European Commission, European Banking
Authority (EBA), European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), European Insurance and
Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA), European Central Bank (ECB), Single Supervisory
Mechanism (SSM), and Single Resolution Board (SRB).
U.S. participants included o icials from the U.S. Department of the Treasury and sta from
independent regulatory agencies, including: the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve
System (FRB), Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Federal Deposit Insurance
Corporation (FDIC), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and O ice of the Comptroller of
the Currency (OCC). U.S. participants expressed views on issues in their respective areas of
responsibility.
The Forum focused on five key themes: (1) supervision and regulation of cross-border activities,
particularly in the areas of derivatives and central clearing; (2) the importance of monitoring
market developments, both in relation to financial assets classes, like leveraged loans and
collateralized loan obligations, and reference rates, like the London Interbank O ered Rate; (3)
implementation of international standards in banking and insurance; (4) regulatory issues
presented by fintech/digital finance; and (5) EU regulations related to sustainable finance.
In the area of banking, participants discussed the process and timeline for implementing the
final Basel III reforms, as well as resolution issues. Participants considered U.S. developments
regarding prudential requirements for foreign banks, including tailoring prudential standards
based on risk; the single counterparty credit limits; and proposed amendments to the Volcker
rule. Participants also discussed EU work on the Banking Union arrangements for deposit
insurance and backstop resolution funding. In the area of insurance, participants discussed
ongoing multilateral and bilateral cooperation. They also discussed U.S. tax reform as well as
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3/19/2020

Joint Statement on the U.S. – EU Financial Regulatory Forum | U.S. Department of the Treasury

steps taken by the United States on matters related to tax requirements a ecting U.S. and dual
EU-U.S. citizens resident in the European Union and related reporting by financial institutions.
Regarding capital markets, participants discussed market data transparency, research coverage
for small and medium-sized enterprises, the EU’s framework for capital markets, EU data
protection rules, and the registration of EU funds with the SEC. Participants also discussed the
SEC’s final rules and guidance related to security-based swap dealer registration, including
substituted compliance. In addition, participants discussed the CFTC’s proposed rules for swap
execution facilities. Concerning central counterparties (CCPs), participants discussed crossborder supervision, equivalence for SEC-registered CCPs, and recovery and resolution.
In addition, U.S. and EU participants discussed developments in financial services and markets,
including the transition period following the United Kingdom’s departure from the European
Union, corporate indebtedness, the repo market, and the transition of benchmark rates away
from the panel reference rates. Participants also engaged on the European Commission’s
priorities including preventing and combatting money laundering and financing of terrorism.
Additional topics discussed include work on digital finance, cross-border data flows in financial
services, operational resilience, and third-party service suppliers. In the area of sustainable
finance, participants discussed topics including the EU’s taxonomy, disclosure requirements,
and related financial stability monitoring.
Given the global nature of financial markets, participants acknowledged the importance of the
Forum in fostering ongoing dialogue between the United States and European Union. Regular
communication on supervisory and regulatory issues of mutual concern should foster financial
stability, supervisory cooperation, investor protection, market integrity, and a level playing field.
Participants will continue to engage on these topics, as well as on other topics of mutual
interest ahead of the next Forum meeting, which is expected to take place in Brussels in the
summer of 2020.

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