Secretary Yellen Testifies before Congress for FSOC Annual Report
On Tuesday May 10 and Thursday, May 12, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen testified before the Senate Banking Committee and House Financial Services Committee respectively, as part of the Financial Stability Oversight Council’s annual report to Congress. The scope of the hearings were broad, covering climate risk, cybersecurity, energy, LIBOR, Russian sanctions, and other topics that fall under FSOC’s broad purview. In the Senate hearing, Ranking Member Pat Toomey (R- PA) asked Secretary Yellen about the transition away from LIBOR. Secretary Yellen expressed appreciation for Congress passing LIBOR transition legislation for legacy contracts that lack adequate fallback language and noted that there have been positive developments—particularly in derivatives—in financial institutions transitioning to SOFR. She further noted the importance of banks and other financial institutions selected indices that are robust and have strong data. In the House hearing, Congressman Brad Sherman (D-CA) expressed his gratitude to Secretary Yellen for the Treasury Department’s assistance with the federal LIBOR legislation that passed earlier in the year and urged her to encourage the Fed to move swiftly on its rulemaking. Watch the hearing here.