Finance, Banking & Monetary Policy

The Community Reinvestment Act in the Age of Fintech and Bank Competition

The Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) requires banks to lend to low- and moderate-income (LMI) households in the areas where they take deposits. However, the competitive environment is much changed from when the CRA came into force in 1977, and mounting evidence suggests the CRA is either ineffective or damaging. A new study from Cato scholar Diego Zuluaga argues that there is a strong case for repealing the CRA in favor of alternative policies that better achieve its goals.

Should Governments Restrict Cash?

Central bankers and mainstream monetary economists have become intrigued with the idea of reducing, or even entirely eliminating, hand-to-hand currency. Yet the arguments for phasing out cash or confining it to small denomination bills are, when not entirely mistaken, extremely weak. In a new paper, Cato scholar Jeffrey Rogers Hummel argues that proponents of restricting cash appreciably oversell any advantages and ignore or understate the severe disadvantages.

Should Cryptocurrencies Be Regulated like Securities?

In less than a decade, cryptocurrencies have moved from the fringes of financial market activity to a $300 billion asset class traded on exchanges and owned by mainstream investors. Yet a great deal of regulatory uncertainty still surrounds cryptocurrencies. A new paper from Cato scholar Diego Zuluaga discusses how cryptocurrencies fit established regulatory practice, and proposes a framework to provide greater regulatory certainty to market participants and enable the growth of this new technology while fulfilling the policy objectives of the relevant regulatory agencies.

Cato Studies

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Of Special Note

The Repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act: Myth and Reality

The Repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act: Myth and Reality

The Glass-Steagall Act was enacted in 1933 in response to banking crises in the 1920s and early 1930s. It imposed the separation of commercial and investment banking. In 1999, Glass-Steagall was partially repealed by the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act. When the United States suffered a severe financial crisis less than a decade later, some leapt to the conclusion that this repeal was at least partly to blame. In a new study, international financial regulatory expert Oonagh McDonald argues that the notion that repealing Glass-Steagall caused the financial crisis, and that bringing it back would prevent future crises, is not supported by the facts.

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The Regulators Are Coming for Bitcoin

As cryptocurrencies hit new highs, is federal regulation far behind? And if it is, can regulators really do anything to crack down on these decentralized networks? Jerry Brito of Coin Center offers an analysis.

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Events

35th Annual Monetary Conference

After more than nine years of unconventional monetary policy, it’s time to question the Fed’s strategy and offer new ideas for the future of monetary policy. At Cato’s 35th Annual Monetary Conference, leading scholars, policymakers, and journalists examined the case for a rules-based international monetary system, considered steps to normalize monetary policy, debated the future of currency, and explored China’s future in the global monetary system.

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Financial Inclusion: The Cato Summit on Financial Regulation

New financial tools are bringing more people into the modern financial world — changing how households save, borrow, invest in their futures, and pay for everyday needs, while helping serve the unbanked and underbanked in society. What innovations are making access to financial services easier, more affordable, and safer? How are regulators adapting to such rapid change? Is our regulatory framework helping or hindering progress toward more inclusion? Join us for the 5th annual Cato Summit on Financial Regulation as we explore the policy framework for financial inclusion.

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