A collection of U.S. trade groups are calling for banking regulators to further loosen regulatory capital requirements — a trend that’s already expected to shape the U.S. bank sector in the year ahead.
In a joint release, business lobbyists from a cross-section of industries, such as the financial, real estate and agricultural sectors, said that prudential regulators should review the capital requirements for large banks. The groups included the U.S. Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA), the Futures Industry Association, the International Swaps and Derivatives Association and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
They argued that the tougher requirements adopted in response to the global financial crisis, known as the Basel III rules, are hampering economic growth — and that relaxing those requirements will spur activity.
“Specifically, common sense adjustments to Basel III endgame, the surcharge [for global systemically-important banks], stress testing, and leverage requirements will improve access to credit and reduce the costs of goods and services for American businesses and consumers, ensuring the U.S. economy can continue to thrive and grow,” they said.
This latest call for weaker bank regulation comes amid a shift that’s already underway.
In a recent report, Fitch Ratings revised its outlook for global banking regulation from “neutral” to “looser,” citing a pivot among policymakers to prioritize growth over safety.
Fitch said that its revised outlook “is mainly driven by our view that regulations are moving back from prudency primacy to a pro-growth deregulation agenda, particularly in the U.S., but also in other developed countries…”
Indeed, the rating agency said that it expects 2026 to be a “decisive year for Basel III implementation in the U.S.”
“We expect deregulation to gather speed, removing the ‘gold-plating’ on the Basel III endgame rules as well as introducing industry-friendly reforms to capital buffers and leverage,” it said — along with recent efforts to soften stress tests and leverage requirements.
Additionally, Fitch said that looser capital regulation in the U.S. is expected to enable banks to become more competitive with private credit providers.
“While this might help to slow the transitioning of credit risk to the private sector, the system-wide capital available to absorb credit losses will decline,” it noted.