One Picture Equals 1,000 Regulations

By Linda Koco
InsuranceNewsNet

Remember the saying about how a picture is worth a thousand words? Well, the following link leads to a chart that represents way more than a thousand words. It is an eye-opening summary of regulations that Daniel M. Gallagher says have been imposed on U.S. financial services firms since enactment of the Dodd-Frank Act in 2010.

Prepare to squint and use a powerful magnifier, as there are a lot of regulations to see.

Gallagher said the regulations have “come from an alphabet soup of domestic regulators,” including the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), of which he is a commissioner. The chart is the handiwork of Gallagher and his staff, with design assistance from the SEC’s publications office.

Many of the regulations are related to “edicts” of non-accountable international bodies such as the Financial Stability Board, Gallagher said, adding that in many instances, there was no requirement for a robust cost-benefit analysis.

 “We as regulators are, when it comes to the possibility that our rules are causing death by a thousand cuts, the proverbial ostrich — head firmly entrenched in the sand,” he said.

Why release this chart? Gallagher said he’s hoping it will inform future regulatory endeavors, and that “academics, the financial services industry, and other interested parties will undertake similar, more detailed analyses.” Do you think it will work? Weigh in below.

InsuranceNewsNet Editor-at-Large Linda Koco, MBA, specializes in life insurance, annuities and income planning. Linda can be reached at linda.koco@innfeedback.com.

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Linda Koco, MBA, is a contributing editor to InsuranceNewsNet, specializing in life insurance, annuities and income planning. Linda can be reached at linda.koco@innfeedback.com.