Financial Reform: Congress Reaches a Deal

Congressional negotiators struck a deal in the small hours of Friday morning for a sweeping reform of financial regulation. After a grueling 20-hour session that lasted through the night—and two weeks of reconciliation between the House and the Senate—the bill will provide the most significant overhaul since the Great Depression. Among its big-ticket items are a softened ban on proprietary trading by banks, known as the Volcker rule, and new oversight of the derivatives market. “They are huge accomplishments,” Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd (D-CT) said before going into the negotiations on Wednesday.