Regulatory Developments
and
Technical Notes
Regulatory Developments
ABS Concept Release. On September 26, 2025, the SEC published a concept release on residential mortgage-backed securities disclosures. See ABS Release. Of interest as well is the statement of Chairman Paul Atkins on the release. In his remarks, Chairman Atkins said “[t]he concept release is the first step in the Commission’s efforts to revitalize the public market for RMBS and modernize the agency’s regulations of ABS.” It may also be the first and necessary step in addressing the conservatorship of the GSEs. A possible parallel approach might be to enable U.S. issuers to issue covered bonds. Why not enable another working alternative to give us the best chance of supporting the housing finance market? See Use CBs to Restart the PLS Market.
Basel III Endgame – U.S. banking agencies announced proposed final Basel III regulations, which would have the effect of significant increases in capital requirements for banks, including foreign banks, operating in the U.S.See thefull rule proposal.
Bank of Canada – The Canadian central bank announced the eligibility of covered bonds in its repo porgram. Now Canadian banks can access liquidity in the same manner as EU banks. See the announcement.
BCBS – Basle has announced increased capital requirements for securitization exposures.See the full report.
Volcker Rule Amendment – The Volcker Rule was amended and provides some important clarity.See the full amendment.
Final Risk Retention – The SEC has finalized its risk retention rule for securitizations.See the full text of the final rule.
Reg AB II and Covered Bonds – Reg AB II loan level requirements for residential mortgage securitization were viewed as an impossible burden by Canadian banks and led them to abandoning SEC registered covered bond programs in 2016 when the changes became effective.
Final Reg AB II – SEC finalizes the amendments to Regulation AB
U.S. Treasury – United States Department of the Treasury has requested comments on the private sector development of a well-functioning private label securities (PLS) market for residential mortgage loans. See the original request.
LCR in Canada Covered bonds qualify for LCR Level 2A.
Volcker Rule – only foreign bank covered bonds are carved out of the prohibitions in the rule?
Technical Notes