The SEC on Sept. 18 adopted amendments to the Volcker rule, joining fellow regulators Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
The four agencies, together with the Federal Reserve Board, are jointly responsible for implementing regulations under Section 13 of the Bank Holding Company Act. Amendments to the Volcker rule, which prohibits banks from engaging in proprietary trading, await approval from the Fed.
In a statement about the amendments, SEC Chairman Jay Clayton said SEC-registered, bank-affiliated dealers will still be subject to the existing "dealer prong" defining the scope of their trading account for Volcker Rule purposes. But Clayton added that they will be more certain about whether their underwriting, market making and hedging activities comply with the exemptions for these statutorily permitted activities.
"As the primary regulator of U.S. securities markets, it is our job to work with our fellow regulatory agencies to help ensure that jointly-issued regulations effectively implement statutory mandates without imposing undue burdens on participants in our markets, including imposing unnecessary costs or reducing access to capital and liquidity," Clayton said.
