Daniel Tarullo

In the wake of the financial crisis, Congress and regulators made the most far-reaching changes in financial regulation since the New Deal. Some have argued that more needs to be done to combat the too-big-to-fail problem and ensure financial stability, while others claim that the new regulations are impeding financial intermediation and holding down economic growth. With the Administration stating its desire for substantial changes to the Dodd-Frank Act and agency regulations, is a major rollback of the post-crisis regulatory reform agenda in the offing? Drawing on his experience leading much of that agenda at the Federal Reserve, Daniel Tarullo assesses the prospects for change. He offers insight into legislative initiatives most likely to be successful, as well as the potential for significant regulatory and supervisory changes even without amendments to Dodd-Frank.

The prolonged but subdued economic recovery since has raised the question of whether the financial crisis and Great Recession imposed lasting harm on the American economy, or accelerated changes that were already taking place, or have simply lengthened the time it will take to return to pre-crisis norms. In all likelihood, each of these possibilities has some force in explaining current conditions and what we can expect in the future. Daniel Tarullo shares his assessment and explores labor market changes, inflation, productivity trends, financial developments, and other factors that shed light on prospects for the economy.

While financial regulatory authority rests with local authorities, the impact of international regulatory standards on national regulation has never been greater. In response to the financial crisis, international efforts were launched by the leaders of the G-20 to coordinate a stronger regulatory framework across countries. The Financial Stability Board, the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, the International Monetary Fund, and other organizations joined in this effort. But are they creating minimum standards for all countries, or harmonized national standards, or something else? Are countries abiding by the standards that have been agreed? How will they deal with the rising tensions between international initiatives and domestic politics? And how will Brexit and other global developments affect international standards? With his first-hand involvement in the post-crisis international efforts, as well as the perspective provided by his prior experience in the State Department and White House, Daniel Tarullo discusses the current importance of international standards and what their practical impact on financial firms is likely to be in the future.