Mittlerweile hat sich herumgesprochen, dass die Reform der Finanzmärkte ausgesprochen zäh verläuft. Die meisten Detaildiskussionen finden kaum noch öffentliche Beachtung (der Blick Log trackt die Diskussion über diese Mindmap). Die Banken wird es freuen. Wenig erfreut ist die Branche über die sogenannte Volcker Rule, einem eigentlich von der Group of Thirty unter dem Paul Volcker entwickelten Vorschlag. Dieser sieht eine tiefergehende Veränderung der Struktur der Finanzinstitute vor. Das Handelsblatt fasste die wesentlichen Inhalte zusammen:
“So soll es Banken verboten werden, auf eigene Rechnung am Kapitalmarkt zu agieren, Hedge-Fonds zu betreiben oder Private-Equity-Einheiten zu führen. Dies gilt für solche Institute, die ein Einlagengeschäft haben. So soll verhindert werden, dass die Regierung Banken wegen Fehlspekulationen im Eigenhandel retten muss, um die Sparbücher der kleinen Leute zu sichern. Für Finanzinstitute ohne Einlagen sollen den neuen Vorschlägen zufolge zudem die Vorgaben für die Kapitalunterlegung des Eigenhandels deutlich verschärft werden. Außerdem will Obama der weiteren Konzentration von Marktanteilen im Bankgeschäft entgegenwirken. So soll kein Institut mehr als zehn Prozent der gesamten Verbindlichkeiten des Finanzsektors auf sich vereinen.”
Ob die Änderungen so in Kraft treten, ist offen. Aufgrund der Sitzverteilung im US-Kongress, vor allem aber wegen des Abstimmungen blockierenden “Filibustern" ist eine Aufweichung zu erwarten (siehe Obamas Probleme mit dem Gesetz).
Der Text selbst wurde nicht von der Regierung publiziert, jedoch über die Webseiten von Zero Hedge und imarkets veröffentlich, allerdings ohne Quellenangabe. Die Volcker Rule ergänzt den Bank Holding Company Act:
PROHIBITION ON PROPRIETARY TRADING.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the appropriate Federal banking agencies shall jointly prohibit proprietary trading by an insured depository institution or by a company that controls an insured depository institution or is treated as a bank holding company for purposes of this Act.
EXCEPTION FOR UNITED STATES AND OTHER GOVERNMENT AND RELATED OBLIGATIONS.
Any prohibition imposed pursuant to this subsection shall not apply to trading in obligations of the United States or any agency thereof, obligations, participations, or other instruments of or issued by the Government National Mortgage Association, the Federal National Mortgage Association, and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, and obligations of any State or of any political subdivision thereof.
PROHIBITION ON SPONSORING AND INVESTING IN HEDGE FUNDS AND PRIVATE EQUITY FUNDS.
The appropriate Federal banking agencies shall jointly prohibit sponsoring and investing in hedge funds and private equity funds by an insured depository institution or by a company that controls an insured depository institution or is treated as a bank holding company for purposes of the Bank Holding Company Act.
EXCEPTION FOR INVESTMENTS IN SMALL BUSINESS INVESTMENT COMPANIES AND INVESTMENTS DESIGNED PRIMARILY TO PROMOTE THE PUBLIC WELFARE.
Any prohibition imposed pursuant to this subsection shall not apply to investments in small business investment companies and investments designed primarily to promote the public welfare as provided in
LIMITATIONS ON RELATIONSHIP WITH HEDGE FUNDS AND PRIVATE EQUITY FUNDS.
No insured depository institution and no company that controls an insured depository institution or that is treated as a bank holding company for purposes of this Act that serves, directly or indirectly, as the investment manager or investment adviser to a company described in subsection may enter into a covered transaction as defined in section 23A of the Federal Reserve Act with, or provide custody, securities lending and other prime brokerage services to, such company.
RULEMAKING AUTHORITY.
The appropriate Federal banking agencies shall jointly issue regulations and guidance to carry out this section including appropriate additional capital requirements giving full effect to the prudential intent of the Congress regarding this section.
EFFECTIVE DATE AND TRANSITION.
The provisions of this section shall take effect after the end of the 180-day period beginning on the date of enactment of this title.
TRANSITION.
Any insured depository institution, any company which owns or controls an insured depository institution and any company which is treated as a bank holding company for purposes of the Bank Holding Company Act, shall not, after two years from the effective date of this Act, retain any investment prohibited by this section. The appropriate Federal banking agency is authorized, upon application of any such company, to extend the two-year period as to such company for not more than one year at a time, if in its judgment, such an extension would not be detrimental to the public interest, but no such extension shall in the aggregate exceed three years.
CAPITAL AND QUANTITATIVE LIMITATIONS FOR CERTAIN NONBANK FINANCIAL COMPANIES.
The Board shall adopt rules imposing additional capital requirements and specifying additional quantitative limits for nonbank financial companies under its supervision that engage in proprietary trading and sponsoring and investing in hedge funds and private equity funds.
CONCENTRATION LIMIT ON LARGE FINANCIAL FIRMS.
A financial company may not merge or consolidate with, acquire all or substantially all of the assets of, or otherwise acquire control of, another company if the acquiring financial companys total consolidated liabilities upon consummation of the transaction would exceed 10 percent of the aggregate consolidated liabilities of all financial companies at the end of the prior calendar.
RULEMAKING AND GUIDANCE.
The Board shall issue regulations implementing this section, including the definition of terms as necessary. The Board may issue interpretations or guidance regarding the application of this section to an individual company or in general.
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