Thursday, January 14, 2021 The General Election in November, followed by the Georgia runoffs, means major changes may be in the offing for banks. First of all, the defeat of President Trump will result in the appointment of key new regulators, though the timing of the appointments is unclear. The Biden administration is likely to move quickly to put an acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) in place. Also, President-elect Biden is likely to see the CFPB appointment as a possible concession to the Warren wing of the Democratic Party, as opposed to giving that wing substantive legislative concessions. With control of the US Senate, the administration no longer has to worry about having to invoke cloture on its nominations. Thus, the Senate will not be a check, as a practical matter, on who might be named director of the CFPB. As a result, banks are likely to face a rather aggressive CFPB over the next four years. There is currently an acting comptroller of the currency, and again this may be an appointment on which Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and her supporters will weigh in strongly. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) chairperson has a set term of office that is not subject to removal by the President of the United States.