News Release
SEC Climate Disclosure Rule Will Cause Big Problems, CEI Experts Predict
Today the Securities and Exchange Commission described a new rule it plans to impose concerning climate disclosure requirements that may affect even private companies as…
Forbes
Yes, Cannabis Banking Liberalization — SAFE Banking Act — Would Indeed Make U.S. More Competitive
As war continues in the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, interest by policymakers and the media has spiked in the America COMPETES Act, legislation…
News Release
After Bloom Raskin Withdrawal, Biden Should Nominate Someone Focused on Financial Stability, Monetary Policy
President Biden’s nominee to be Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Sarah Bloom Raskin withdrew her nomination from consideration today, after it became clear that…
USA Today
What Did Biden Get Wrong on Crypto? His New Order Threatens to Smother Innovation
President Joe Biden released an executive order Wednesday that could curtail opportunities that cryptocurrency provides for economic advancement, notwithstanding the order’s hopeful tone about…
News Release
CEI Statement: Biden Executive Order to Target Crypto for Regulation
The White House is set to release an executive order today regulating cryptocurrency. CEI Senior Fellow John Berlau expressed concerns about the order and the…
The Washington Times
What Would George Washington Have Done?
The Washington Times cites Senior Fellow John Berlau on his book, George Washington, Entrepreneur: John Berlau has just written a most interesting book, “…
Blog
George Washington, Larry David, Cryptocurrency, and Freedom
One of the most talked-about Super Bowl ads was that of Larry David traveling through history and naysaying innovations that turned out to be hugely…
Blog
Lisa Cook’s First Amendment Problem
Today, the Senate Banking Committee is set to vote on five nominations for the Federal Reserve Board. My CEI colleague Myron Ebell and I have…
The Epoch Times
President George Washington: America’s ‘First Entrepreneur’
The Epoch Times cites Director of Finance Policy John Berlau on President George Washington: Private enterprises he founded had an effect on the future…
Blog
New Mexico Should Reject Interest Rate Limit Base on Federal Mismeasurement
There is an old saying that “a lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is still putting on its shoes.” It has…
News Release
CEI Joins AEA in Opposing Sarah Bloom Raskin’s Nomination to Federal Reserve
The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) signed onto a letter by the American Energy Alliance (AEA) opposing the White House’s nomination of Sarah Bloom…
Letters
Coalition Letter Opposing Sarah Bloom Raskin’s Nomination to Federal Reserve
Dear Chairman Brown and Ranking Member Toomey, As public policy groups who fight for free markets, sound science, and affordable energy, we write in opposition…
Blog
CFPB’s Dodd-Frank Race and Gender Data Collection Mandates Will Harm Financial Inclusion
In mid-2020, on the 10th anniversary of the Dodd-Frank financial overhaul being rammed through Congress and signed by then-President Obama, I catalogued the damage…
The Washington Times
Experts Say More Americans Will Face Debt, Credit Card Delinquency This Year
The Washington Times cites Director of Finance Policy John Berlau on the consequences of lockdowns: John Berlau, director of finance policy at the…
Comment
Comments to Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Small Business Lending Data Collection By Race and Gender
Dear Mr. Chopra, On behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI), I respectfully submit the following comments in response to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s…
National Review
The Fight for the FDIC
While the downfall of “Build Back Better” has been getting a lot of attention, it was not the only Washington policy drama…
News Release
Biden Bank Regulator Nominee Withdraws Due to Bipartisan Opposition
President Biden’s pick for Comptroller of the Currency withdrew today after critics, including the Competitive Enterprise Institute, exposed her many statements sympathetic to communism. CEI…
Law & Liberty
What’s in Your Wallet?
To help foot the bill for the “Build Back Better” budget reconciliation bill—originally slated to cost $3.5 trillion—the Biden administration proposed an unprecedented measure for…
The Epoch Times
Bank Regulator Nominee Tries to Detach From Her Bank Centralization Ideas During Hearing
The Epoch Times cites Senior Fellow John Berlau on a recent statement by Saule Omarova. John Berlau, senior fellow at the free-market Competitive Enterprise…
News Release
Senators Should Reject Comptroller of Currency Nominee Saule Omarova
WASHINGTON – In a hearing today, Senators on the Banking Committee will consider the nomination of Saule Omarova to be Comptroller of the Currency. …
Letters
CEI Joins Letter Opposing Nomination of Saule Omarova for Comptroller of the Currency
November 5, 2021 The Honorable Sherrod Brown Chairman Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs 534 Dirksen Senate Office Building Washington, D.C.
News Release
President Biden Signs Problematic Crypto Provisions into Law
WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden signed the bipartisan infrastructure bill into law today, including more than one trillion dollars in government spending. In addition to…
News Release
CEI Experts Weigh In on Reconciliation Framework Agreed to by White House and Congressional Democrats
WASHINGTON – The White House and congressional democrats announced agreement on a “framework” for a reconciliation bill that will spend nearly $2 trillion and includes…
Blog
Lenny Bruce, Capitalism vs. Communism, and Biden’s Banking Nominee
At the height of the Cold War in the 1960s, then-controversial comedian Lenny Bruce offered a surprising boost to the defense of capitalism over communism.
Blog
“Stop Wall Street Looting Act” Would Empower Wall Street, Harm Main Street
Washington policies are often misnamed. Recent legislative proposals labeled “infrastructure” concerned not roads or bridges, but social spending. But sometimes, a bill in Congress…
Blog
Reconciliation Bill Provision Threatens IRA Holders’ Investing Opportunities
A couple of weeks back, I commented, in a Competitive Enterprise Institute blog post, on a provision of the $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation bill…
The Wall Street Journal
The Fed’s Dismal Digital-Dollar Idea
Alexander William Salter is spot on when he warns of the “Dangers of a Digital Dollar” (op-ed, Oct. 6) to financial…
Forbes
How Budget Reconciliation’s IRA Regs Undermine Bipartisan JOBS Act
In 2012, President Barack Obama signed into law the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act, a bipartisan bill that reduced regulatory barriers preventing ordinary Americans…
News Release
Senate Should Weigh Disturbing Writings of Biden’s CFPB Nominee and Reform Unaccountable Agency
Today the Senate is expected to vote on President Biden’s nominee to head the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Rohit Chopra. CEI Senior Fellow John…
News Release
China Cryptocurrency Ban A Lesson For US: CEI statement
China’s plans to ban private cryptocurrency is terrible but also offers a lesson and opportunity for US policymakers, says Competitive Enterprise Institute financial policy expert…
Blog
Proposed New Restrictions Threaten Opportunity for Middle Class Investors
While President Biden and Congressional Democrats have called for reining in big firms through antitrust and other punitive policies, a tax provision contrived by Congress…
Blog
CEI Continues Fight for Cryptocurrency Freedom
Because the Senate failed to adopt the bipartisan Wyden-Lummis-Toomey amendment even after it was watered down, the infrastructure package’s cryptocurrency tax reporting provisions could destroy,…
News Release
Senate-Passed Infrastructure Bill Is a Gigantic, Counterproductive Spending Bill: CEI Analysis
The Senate today passed a complicated, controversial $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill. CEI policy experts criticized the mammoth bill as a plan that will do…
Blog
Senate Should Pass the Wyden-Lummis-Toomey Cryptocurrency Amendment
The Senate must adopt the bipartisan Wyden-Lummis-Toomey amendment to ensure that the infrastructure package’s cryptocurrency tax reporting provisions do not destroy, rather than help build,…
Forbes
Infrastructure Bill Threatens Cryptocurrency Ecosystem: Why Is Crypto Being Targeted With More Tax Reporting Burdens Than Traditional Finance?
The Senate is poised to vote on an infrastructure bill containing tax-reporting “revenue” provisions that could have devastating effects on the business model of cryptocurrency…
Blog
Wisdom on the Interest-Rate Price Control Folly from John Stuart Mill to Thomas Sowell
Today, the Senate held a hearing entitled, “Protecting Americans from Debt Traps by Extending the Military’s 36% Interest Rate Cap to Everyone.” But the…
Testimony
Testimony of John Berlau Before the House Financial Services Committee, Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Financial Institutions
Chairman Perlmutter, Ranking Member Luetkemeyer, and honorable members of this Subcommittee, thank you for this opportunity to present testimony on behalf of my organization, the…
News Release
CEI Experts React to President Biden’s Wide-Ranging Executive Order on Competition
President Joe Biden signed an Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy today, which the White House claims is aimed at enhancing…
Forbes
How Regulation Creates an Elite Investor Class
Forbes cites Senior Fellow John Berlau on his book, George Washington, Entrepreneur: How Our Founding Father’s Private Business Pursuits Changed America and the World:…
News Release
House Should Be True to America’s Credit Need and Reject Anti-True Lender Resolution
The House is expected to vote soon on a resolution that would un-do a valuable Trump-era deregulatory rule called the “True Lender” rule. CEI led…
News Release
Mark Calabria Had Excellent Stewardship of Fannie, Freddie While at Federal Housing Finance Agency
On news today that President Biden is replacing Trump appointee Mark Calabria as head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), which oversees government-sponsored enterprises…
News Release
House Judiciary Committee Antitrust Bills Would Compromise U.S. as Global Leader on Tech and Harm Consumers
Several antitrust bills were introduced today by members of the House Judiciary Committee, including the “American Innovation and Choice Online Act,” the “Platform Competition and…
National Review
The House Must Be True to the Credit Needs of American Families and Entrepreneurs
As America shows its resilience and recovers from a devastating pandemic, many American families and entrepreneurs need credit to rebuild their lives and…
Blog
Federal Interest Rate Cap and Overturning of “True Lender” Rule Threaten Credit Innovation
On May 11, the U.S. Senate passed a measure, which, though sold as stopping “predatory lenders,” would greatly limit access to credit from solid lenders…
News Release
House Financial Services Committee Should Look for Ways to Empower Middle Class Investors Post-Gamestop Controversy
A House Financial Services Committee hearing revisits GameStop-Robinhood-Reddit controversy from February, in which ordinary retail investors – fueled by social media-platforms – bested hedge funds…
Blog
Biden’s Carried Interest Tax Would Force All Partnerships to Carry Big Burden
“The Biden administration and its allies excel at leveraging crises to expand government,” observes my CEI colleague Wayne Crews on the Biden “infrastructure” plan.
Blog
Don’t Fear Crypto Dip; Fear Regulations that Will Harm America’s Cryptocurrency Lead
After a massive runup for the past few months, the cryptocurrency market experienced a slight dip over the past week and a half. This dip…
News Release
House-passed SAFE Banking Act Would End Federal Threat to Banks Dealing with Legal Cannabis Businesses
The House has passed a bill allowing banks to do business with cannabis companies, the SAFE Banking Act. While Senate action on the bill…
News Release
Regulators Should Let Cryptocurrency Firms Follow in Coinbase Footsteps
The successful cryptocurrency exchange platform Coinbase is poised to go public on April 14 amid high anticipation. CEI Senior Fellow John Berlau urges federal…
Blog
New CEI Paper Revisits Viral Exchange on Payday Loan Rates by Katie Porter and Kathy Kraninger.
It’s not every day an exchange about a technical measurement for loans goes viral on social media. During a 2019 House Committee on Financial…
Inside Sources
Government Mandates for APR Calculations on Small-Dollar Loans Mislead Consumers
As public health turns a corner and the travel industry begins to recover, imagine if the federal government were to impose a crazy rule on…
Study
The Annual Percentage Rate Is the Wrong Metric for Assessing the Cost of a Short-Term Loan
Think calculating the cost of a loan is simple? Not under the longtime rules of the federal government and many states. Consider the following recent…
News Release
Report: APR Calculation Misleading as Applied to Short-Term Loan Costs
A new Competitive Enterprise Institute report criticizes efforts by lawmakers and activists to impose a cap on small-dollar, short-term loans based on a hypothetical…
Comment
Comments to Financial Crimes Enforcement Network on Regulation of Cryptocurrency Wallets
View Full Document as PDF Comments of the Competitive Enterprise Institute To the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network In the matter of…
Small Business Advocate
AUDIO: How Much Does Private Crypto-Currency Threaten Sovereign States?
Senior Fellow John Berlau joins Jim Blasingame to debate the influence private cryptocurrencies could have on the marketplace, our relationship with government, and the viability…
Small Business Advocate
AUDIO: Dealing With the Reality of Digital Payments and Crypto-Currency
Senior Fellow John Berlau joins Jim Blasingame to discuss the difference between the government’s idea of a digital or crypto-currency and that of the private…
Small Business Advocate
AUDIO: What George Washington would think about 2021 America
Senior Fellow John Berlau joins Jim Blasingame to report how America’s father, George Washington, would think about the 2021 marketplace, and why he wouldn’t be…
Blog
Janet Yellen vs. Suze Orman on Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency
As Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is testifying now before the House Financial Services Committee, she will likely get questions about the popularity of bitcoin…
Real Clear Markets
Why Walmart Bank Would Be Great for Business, Consumers
As small businesses and consumers struggle to stay afloat amid challenging economic times, access to credit, capital, and other financial services is critically important to…
Wealth Management
Gary Gensler Lays Out Enforcement Priorities at Senate Hearing
Wealth Management cites Research Fellow Richard Morrison and Senior Fellow John Berlau on the SEC and Gary Gensler: But representatives from the Competitive Enterprise…
News Release
Senate Should Question Biden SEC, CFPB Nominees About Needed Constraints on Regulators
Today, the Senate Banking Committee is considering President Biden’s nomination of both Gary Gensler to head the SEC and Rohit Chopra to head the CFPB.
The Larry O'Connor Show
CEI Joins The Larry O’Connor Show to Discuss “George Washington, Entrepreneur”
Senior Fellow John Berlau joins The Larry O’Connor Show to discuss his new book, George Washington, Entrepreneur: How Our Founding Father’s Private Business Pursuits Changed…
News Release
House Hearing on Robinhood/GameStop Controversy Should Focus on Helping, Not Restricting Investors
On February 18 (tomorrow), the House Financial Services Committee will hold a hearing on the recent Robinhood-GameStop controversy. CEI Senior Fellow John Berlau cautioned…
The Jim Bohannon Show
AUDIO: John Berlau Joins Jim Bohannon to Discuss His Book “George Washington, Entrepreneur.”
Senior Fellow John Berlau joins Jim Bohannon to discuss his book “George Washington, Entrepreneur.”…
Blog
Young Investor’s Tragedy Should Not Cancel Robinhood and Other Fintech Investing Apps
Since the Gamestop-Reddit frenzy, the FinTech investing app Robinhood has taken a lot of arrows. Those who decried the stock market rallies blamed Robinhood for…
Federal News Network
AUDIO: Does Banking Fairness Come At A Fair Price To Consumers?
Senior Fellow John Berlau joins the Federal News Network to discuss the Fair Access Rule by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and…
Blog
Respect, Don’t Restrict, Retail Investors
Watching the wild gyrations of the stock market this week—and some of the reactions to it—brings to mind Ronald Reagan’s observations of the bureaucratic mindset…
News Release
CEI Praises Biden Decision Suspending ‘Fair Access’ Banking Rule
President Biden’s Office of the Comptroller of the Currency today announced that it was halting publication of a final banking rule, pending review. The late…
News Release
Senate Should Question Biden’s Choice to Head CFPB, Rohit Chopra, on Fair Process for Regulating Businesses
The Senate should question President-elect Biden’s nominee to head the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau out of concern that businesses get fair treatment in the regulatory…
The Washington Times
Trump Administration Finalizes ‘Fair Access’ Banking Rule
The Washington Times cites Senior Fellow John Berlau on the “Fair Access” banking rule: “The rule will lead to more, not less, politicization of…
Blog
Treasury, FHFA Reverse ‘Net Worth Sweep” at Fannie and Freddie
The headlines yesterday were that the Trump administration had failed to exit Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from the government-owned conservatorship. This is true…
News Release
New Bank Fair Access Rule Will Cause Costly State of Uncertainty, Red Tape
Today the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, an independent bureau within the United States Department of the Treasury, finalized a new mandate…
National Review
A Big-Government Crackdown on ‘Woke Capital’
National Review cites Senior Fellow John Berlau on the OCC proposed Rule on “Fair Access to Financial Services”: There’s also the matter of how…
News Release
Biden’s SEC Pick Should Focus on Commission’s Core Mission, Not Political Causes: CEI Experts
President-elect Biden is reportedly set to select Gary Gensler to head the Securities and Exchange Commission. Gensler is a current MIT professor who previously served…
News Release
CFPB Taskforce Offers Recommendations to Help Consumers, Fintech Firms
In response to a new report from the CFPB Taskforce on Federal Consumer Financial Law, CEI Senior Fellow John Berlau praised recommendations aimed at helping…
Comment
CEI Comments on OCC Proposed Rule on “Fair Access to Financial Services”
View Full Document as PDF Dear Ms. Boyes: On behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI), I submit this comment letter in opposition…
Real Clear Policy
Why Critics Should Leave Section 230’s Liability Protections Alone
Attacks on Section 230, the liability limiting shield for online platforms, are coming from President Trump, Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill. But the debate around curtailing or…
News Release
CFPB Makes Needed Changes to Qualified Mortgage Rules
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau today issued final rules related to qualified mortgage loans, which require lenders to determine at the onset that consumers…
National Review
Why a ‘Fairness Doctrine’ for Woke Capital Will Backfire on Conservatives
In his majority opinion in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby, Justice Samuel Alito noted that a “corporation is simply a form of organization used by human…
News Release
Corporate Transparency Act Threatens Small Businesses, Privacy Rights
The House today is expected to pass a controversial bill impacting a wide swath of American businesses, as part of the must-pass National Defense Authorization…
News Release
Comptroller Plan to Impose ‘Fairness Doctrine’ for Banks Goes Against Freedom of Association
CEI Senior Fellow John Berlau criticized a proposal by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to impose a “fairness doctrine”…
Blog
President Trump Should Waive Dodd-Frank Provision Harming Vaccine and Ventilator Production and Distribution
The announcement by Pfizer that the vaccine it is developing with German firm BioNTech may be 90 percent effective against COVID-19 is worth celebrating.
Wall Street Journal
Dodd-Frank Undermines the Fight Against Covid
Blog
Finally, a Fix for Fannie and Freddie
In my recent blog post on the 10th anniversary of Dodd-Frank, I lamented that while “this supposed ‘financial reform’ has caused harmful and sometimes…
News Release
New CEI Report Finds Bipartisan Embrace of Harmful, Interventionist Tech Policies
Neither major political party holds a monopoly on bad ideas when it comes to federal policy towards the technology sector, according to a…
Study
Terrible Tech 2.0
View Full Document as PDF Executive Summary If you are looking for bipartisanship in Washington, D.C., the technology policy sector may be your…
Comment
CEI Comments on Federal Housing Finance Agency’s Proposed Regulatory Capital Framework
News Release
SEC Takes Step Towards Equality, Against Privilege with Change to Accredited Investor Rule
Today the Securities and Exchange Commission announced action to liberalize so-called accredited investor regulation. John Berlau, a longtime proponent of such reform, praised the decision.
Blog
Tragedy of Young Investor Shouldn’t Be Exploited to Harm Freedoms
The recent death of Alexander Kearns, the 20-year-old day trader who took his own life, has sparked a conversation about the business practices of an increasingly important…
National Review
When George Washington Met Moses
In 1790, the United States of America was a new nation, but Moses Seixas was already living what would come to be called the American Dream.
Forbes
From SpaceX To George Washington: How Our First President Welcomed Balloon Flight And Predicted Air Travel
With its splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico, the SpaceX Crew Dragon became the latest vehicle to continue the tradition of manned flights taking off from and…
American Greatness
U.S. Economy Suffers Biggest Quarterly Decline Ever, Under Coronavirus Lockdowns
American Greatness cites CEI senior fellows John Berlau and Iain Murray: The U.S. House of Representatives and Senate are considering bills for additional coronavirus relief…
Forbes
Don’t Exploit Tragedy To Curtail Beneficial Fintech Investing Apps
My colleague Joshua Rutzick, research associate at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, contributed significantly to the research and writing of this post. The recent death of…
Forbes
Don’t Exploit Tragedy to Curtail Beneficial Fintech Investing Apps
The recent death of Alexander Kearns, the 20-year-old day trader who took his own life, has sparked a conversation about the business practices…
News Release
Repeal #NeverNeeded Regulations Hindering Use of Tech at Home During Deadly Pandemic
The COVID-19 crisis has severely tested individuals and businesses, making access to technologies and services that enabled large swaths of the American economy to move…
Study
Repeal of #NeverNeeded Regulations Can Help People Stay Home and Safe During the COVID-19 Crisis
As individuals and businesses continue to address the COVID-19 health crisis, access to technologies and services that have enabled large swaths of the economy to…
Blog
Dodd-Frank Still Harmful After a Decade, But Modest Deregulation Has Helped
Dodd-Frank has caused harmful and sometimes disastrous effects for consumers, investors, entrepreneurs, and Main Street financial institutions such as community banks and credit unions. The…
Blog
CFPB’s Kraninger Should Drop Navient Litigation in Light of Supreme Court Holding
CEI has praised Kathy Kraninger, director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, for her many deregulatory initiatives that—in contrast to her predecessor, Richard Cordray—protect consumer…
The Wall Street Journal
‘George Washington, Entrepreneur’ Review: Mount Vernon Industries
News Release
CFPB Offers Relief on Small Dollar Loans
Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released its long-awaited final rewrite of the payday lending rule, formally titled the Payday, Vehicle Title, and Certain…