Topic
Policy moves to loosen post-crisis financial rules in the US, UK and EU.
Paul Atkins would raise the Section 404(b) float exemption from $700 million to $2 billion, releasing about 1,700 companies from a $430 million pool of attestation fees drawn out of the $3.8 billion they pay their auditors.
Reality
RepTrak's 2026 banking score fell just 0.4 points, but willingness to do business and benefit of the doubt fell more. Deregulation and AI are draining goodwill before they touch trust.
Reality
Rescinding Rule 206(4)-5 would end the two-year fee timeout for firms whose staff give politically. The SEC says antifraud law and fiduciary duty already do that work. But the research it acknowledges found donations tracked pension mandates.
Reality
Nearly 40 action items, most designated deregulatory, and a majority that were absent from last year's list. Compliance calendars and capital-formation routes are both about to move.
Reality
US regulators have proposed trimming big-bank capital requirements by nearly 5%. The European Commission is preparing its own answer, on a timeline that 27 member states may not honour.
Reality