Washington, D.C., January 30, 2020 – SIFMA today issued the following statement from Kenneth E. Bentsen, Jr., president and CEO, on the newly proposed revisions to the Volcker Rule:

“The current definition of ‘covered fund’ remains significantly overbroad and unduly complex, and the exclusions from the definition are excessively narrow and difficult to implement. This unnecessarily restricts the ability of banking entities to facilitate capital formation in an efficient and safe and sound manner promoting U.S. economic growth and job creation by prohibiting or restricting their ability to provide asset management services, customer facilitation services and long-term debt and equity financing to U.S. businesses indirectly through fund structures, even though they are expressly permitted to do so directly.  We are reviewing the proposal with our members and look forward to offering our views during the comment period.”

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SIFMA is the leading trade association for broker-dealers, investment banks and asset managers operating in the U.S. and global capital markets. On behalf of our industry’s nearly 1 million employees, we advocate for legislation, regulation and business policy, affecting retail and institutional investors, equity and fixed income markets and related products and services. We serve as an industry coordinating body to promote fair and orderly markets, informed regulatory compliance, and efficient market operations and resiliency. We also provide a forum for industry policy and professional development. SIFMA, with offices in New York and Washington, D.C., is the U.S. regional member of the Global Financial Markets Association (GFMA). For more information, visit http://www.sifma.org.