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Yahoo Finance
Consumer protection agency closes the Biden era taking big swings
Yahoo Finance cited CEI’s financial expert on bad regulations “I can’t speak to the merits of every lawsuit, they’re filing them so fast,” said…
News Release
Fed cuts interest rates again, fewer cuts planned next year: CEI analysis
Today, the Federal Reserve announced that interest rates will be cut by 25 basis points, with an additional note that there will be fewer…
The National News Desk
Sticky inflation, Trump bring obstacles to Fed’s path to lowering rates
“While the Fed would like to cut interest rates, if they really want to signal seriousness about inflation and they want to build up that…
Search Posts
Western Journalism
Wow: The Obama Admin Is About To Do Something That Could Crush Dave Ramsey
Western Journalism reports on the Department of Labor's fiduciary rule and highlights John Berlau's study on the proposed rule. In a study by…
Forbes
How Fiduciary Rule May Censor Financial Broadcasters Like Dave Ramsey
Popular financial radio show host Dave Ramsey caused a firestorm on Twitter last week when he weighed in against the “fiduciary rule”—the controversial pending Department…
Blog
Australian Bank Devalues Rewards Scheme in Anticipation of Interchange Fee Cap
I fear I am beginning to sound like a broken record on the subject of payments card interchange fees, with the needle stuck on “We…
Daily Caller
REPORT: Feds Are Destroying Free Choice In The Retirement System
The Daily Caller discusses John Berlau's report on the Department of Labor's proposed fiduciary rule. The Department of Labor (DOL) has argued people…
Washington Free Beacon
Report: Rule Would Cost Middle Class $80 Billion in Lost Savings
The Washington Free Beacon highlights John Berlau's report on the Department of Labor rule that will hurt middle-class investors. The Department of Labor…
Think Advisor
Speaker Ryan Continues to Assail DOL Fiduciary Rule
Think Advisor highlights John Berlau's report on the Department of Labor's proposed fiduciary rule that will harm middle-class investors. Today, the Competitive Enterprise…
Heartland Institute
GAO: Small Banks, Credit Unions Hurt by Dodd-Frank
The Heartland Institute discusses Dodd-Frank with John Berlau. John Berlau, a senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, says consumers are objectively worse…
Letters
Coalition Letter Against Discriminatory Taxes on Reinsurance
Full Document Availible in PDF Dear Chairmen Brady and Hatch and Ranking Members Levin and Wyden: The undersigned members of the Coalition for…
Blog
Don’t Put Eco-Finance Measures in Energy Bill
Cronyism and boondoggles in an energy bill is nothing new in the U.S. Congress. But this week, senators of both parties are taking the process…
Daily Caller
House Passes Bill Aimed At Operation Choke Point
The Daily Caller mentions two recommendations CEI had for the bill curtailing Operation Choke Point prior to its passing in the House. The Competitive Enterprise Institute recommended…
Blog
White House Threatens Veto to Choke Point Reform Bill
As has been demonstrated time and again, this administration is opposed to any change in the law that will reduce its powers. We see this…
Blog
How to Get Rid of Obsolete Regulations
The House this week is considering H.R. 1675, the Encouraging Employee Ownership Act, sponsored by Rep. Randy Hultgren (R-Ill.). I’ll leave it to my colleague…
Blog
Bill Aims to Stop Operation Choke Point Happening Again
Operation Choke Point is a major abuse of executive authority. As we have detailed over the last couple of years, Choke Point is an…
Blog
Interchange Fee Warnings Coming True in EU
We have often warned about the negative effects of interchange fee regulation and specifically a cap on interchange fees. Last year we warned the European Parliament that…
Blog
UK Brewery Success Shows Lost Freedom in U.S.
On Tuesday evening, President Obama will give his final State of the Union address. In evaluating the state of the U.S., it’s useful to look…
Forbes
Let Small Businesses Fuel Job Growth Again
As 2015 has come to an end, the Federal Reserve has finally raised interest rates, but they will still remain near zero. Zero also approximates…
Blog
Omnibus: No Financial Reg Relief, Dangerous GSE Provision, But a Little CFPB Sunshine
My Competitive Enterprise Institute colleagues and I have made the case for members of Congress to use the omnibus spending bill as an exercise…
The Wall Street Journal
Help the Small and Nimble Get a Start Going Public
Christopher Mims writes that letting ordinary Americans invest in the early stages of high-growth firms “has long been the dream” of equity crowdfunding advocates (“Startup…
Blog
Will DOL’s “Fiduciary Rule” Silence Dave Ramsey?
It is indeed sad that 40 percent of millennials favor the government banning speech that some deem offensive, according to a recent Pew poll. Even…
Blog
CFPB’s Database Should Be Bipartisan Privacy Concern
The behemoth Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) played a big role in Tuesday night’s GOP presidential debate on Fox Business, both during the commercials and…
Blog
Equity Crowdfunding at Last, But Still Incomplete
More than three years after the JOBS Act was signed into law by President Obama, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) today will finally vote…
TribLive
Stopping the Government’s Raid on Savings
TribLive interviews John Berlau on the Department of Labor's proposed "fiduciary rule," laying out the dangers of this proposed policy. The rule would…
Blog
CEI at Money20/20
I’m here on the Las Vegas Strip at Money20/20, a trade show and forum in the area of FinTech—a term used to describe a…
Blog
Onions Have No Futures
Lots of people object to markets in certain commodities. Kidneys, archeological relics, adoption rights, and a host of more prosaic items have been deemed by…
Newsmax
Govt Vies for Control Over Your Investment Decisions
John Berlau writes in Newsmax about the recent CEI headed coalition letter to Congress urging them to defund the DOL's "fiduciary rule." A…
The Hill
Overnight Finance: Path clears for Ryan; GOP backing off debt-limit bill
The Hill interviews John Berlau on CEI's recent coalition letter written to Congress urging them to defund the Department of Labor's fiduciary rule.
Blog
33 Groups Call on Congress to Defund Portfolio Attack by Labor Department
Today, a coalition letter signed by leaders of 33 leaders of free-market and conservative public policy organizations urges Congress to defund the Department of…
Daily Caller
The Bipartisan Push Back Against Obama’s Retirement Attack
The Daily Caller details CEI's recent coalition letter written to Congress detailing the restrictions the Department of Labor's fiduciary rule places on Americans and their…
Blog
Back to the Future in Payments Technology
One of the things Back to the Future Part II almost got right about 2015 was how Biff paid for his cab ride—with a thumbprint. A lot…
Daily Caller
Why Warren’s Witch-Hunt Won’t Work
CEI's expert John Berlau writes for The Daily Caller discussing Elizabeth Warren's desire for an increase in financial regulations. Elizabeth Warren “drew blood,”…
NewsMax
Elizabeth Warren Wants to Make Financial Decisions For You
John Berlau discusses Elizabeth Warren's pushes for excessive financial regulations in his piece published in News Max. Elizabeth Warren “drew blood,” writes Washington…
Blog
Warren Bullies Not Just Litan But Consumers
Elizabeth Warren “drew blood,” writes Washington Post reporter Tom Hamburger. “Elizabeth Warren Claims Another Scalp,” reads the headline of an excellent piece by John Fund at National Review…
Blog
Transparency in Card Fees: Where Does the Argument Stop?
There are three ways banks that issue credit and debit cards can gain revenue from them: interest rates (in the case of credit cards) charged…
Blog
Australian Reserve Bank Gets the Economics Wrong on Interchange Fees
A new report commissioned by the International Alliance for Electronic Payments, of which CEI is a member, finds that the Reserve Bank of Australia…
Blog
Savers Oppose “Fiduciary Rule” Sold by Labor Department as “Protecting” Them
“A fundamental shift in Wall Street culture” is what the Department of Labor is aiming for with the “fiduciary rule.” That’s what DOL Deputy Assistant…
Blog
Dodd-Frank Act Strangles Small Banks
The 2010 Dodd-Frank Act was enacted partly to end “too-big-to-fail” banks, but it has done quite the opposite. It has curbed competition with big banks…
Blog
CEI and Allies Submit Evidence to Australian Senate Inquiry on Credit Cards
Today, CEI and other members of the International Alliance for Electronic Payments joined the Australian Taxpayers Alliance in submitting evidence to an Australian Senate inquiry into credit…
Comment
IAEP Submission to Australian Senate on Credit Card Interest Payments
Full Document Available in PDF Credit card interest rates and other features are only partly driven by factors such as the Reserve…
Blog
Financial Regulation and Payments Update: July 31, 2015
Last week saw the fifth anniversary of Dodd-Frank and there was a great deal of commentary from opponents of the act, not least from us…
Blog
Not Dodd-Frank, Not Glass-Steagall, But Real Competition to End TBTF
Progressives cheered Hillary Clinton last week when she said policy makers need to “go beyond Dodd-Frank.” She didn’t rule out repeal of some sections, but most…
Blog
The SEC Sinks Its Claws Deeper into Executive Pay Packages
Once upon a time critics of corporate America complained that executive salaries were too high, and too often disconnected from the performance of the firm.
Products
Controversy builds at U.S. consumer protection bureau
The Human Events quotes CEI`s John Berlau on the Consumer Protection Bureau office renovations:…
Blog
Dodd-Frank Conflict Minerals Rules Cause Smuggling, Starvation, and Harm to U.S. Businesses
The 2010 Dodd-Frank Act effectively restricted U.S. business’s ability to obtain minerals from the war-torn nation of the Congo and surrounding countries. That caused massive …
Blog
The Right to Choose Your Investment Partner
The following is an abridged and revised version of my keynote address to the FinTech Global Expo at the San Diego Convention Center on May 29,…
Blog
Johnson-Crapo’s Reemergence Ruins Reg Relief Bill
Last year, an overhaul of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac called Johnson-Crapo—named after then Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Johnson (D-S.D.) and Ranking Member Mike…
Newsmax
‘Fiduciary Rule’ Takes Aim at Retirement Plans
Three years ago, President Barack Obama signed into law the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act, modestly but significantly liberalizing securities markets for investors…
Blog
Labor Department “Fiduciary Rule” Threatens to Eviscerate JOBS Act Gains for Investors, Entrepreneurs
Three years ago, President Barack Obama signed into law the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act, modestly but significantly liberalizing securities markets for investors and…
Blog
Gruber’s Disciples Gunning for Your IRA and 401(k)
Is Jonathan Gruber, the MIT economist who seemingly dropped out of public view after he was caught on camera bragging how he and other Obamacare…
Illinois Policy
Illinois House passes nation’s most competitive crowdfunding rules
Illinois Policy quotes CEI`s John Berlau on the proposed bill on crowdfunding by Illinois House: This innovative form of funding is described by…
News Release
CEI’s John Berlau Responds to Department of Labor’s Fiduciary Rule
Today, the Labor Department is expected to release its long-awaited "fiduciary rule." Ostensibly aimed at addressing potential conflicts of interest by brokers who offer retirement investment advice, Competitive…