Center Forward is out with another ad attacking the Federal Reserve’s Basel III endgame proposal. It kicks off 2024 with a TV spot knocking capital reform, and it won’t be the last of the year.
The 30-second ad cites concerns from “experts everywhere” about the potential impacts of the Fed’s proposed rules to increase capital and risk management requirements for big banks.
“In America, people disagree on just about everything — except the Fed’s new rules that would tighten capital markets,” the ad says. (We’re pretty sure most Americans don’t have a very firm opinion on Basel III.)
The ad spotlights comments from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other groups on how the Basel III proposal could affect banks’ ability to fuel economic growth and serve small businesses while also raising the cost of borrowing and clean energy. This isn’t the first time Center Forward has gone after the proposed rules. The advocacy group sparked headlines after buying an ad spot during Sunday Night Football in November.
The new rounds of ads come as the Fed continues to finalize the Basel III proposal for this year along with other tweaks to banks’ capital requirements. The proposed rules would put in place recommendations that have been in the works for years, plus some changes in response to a string of bank failures in 2023.
Republicans in Congress have opposed the Biden administration’s effort, and some more centrist Democrats have been wary too. The banking lobby’s push for the Fed to water down these changes continues to be its top political priority in 2024, and the coming months will be crunch time for outside groups to weigh in.
— Laura Weiss
