Volcker Rule Compliance

The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (DFA) was passed into law in 2010.The DFA contains many titles and provisions intended to enhance the safety and soundness of the US banking system, and was drafted as a response to many of the adverse outcomes of the Great Financial Crisis.

The Volcker Rule (the Rule), drafted largely by former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker, is a provision of the DFA that specifically prohibits regulated commercial banking entities from engaging in “proprietary (read: speculative) trading” with their own capital. The Rule also severely constrains these entities from investing in “covered funds” (hedge funds and private-equity funds).This course will address the major components of the Rule as well as the implications of the rule for regulated banking entities.Best practices for developing a compliance framework to address the requirements of the Rule will be described.

Course Objectives

By the end of the course, the participant will be able to:

• Explain the scope of the Volcker Rule (Section 619 of the Dodd-Frank Act)
• Identify the types of entities affected by the Volcker Rule
• Understand the limits and prohibitions on proprietary trading under the Rule
• Assess whether transactions meet the terms of “covered funds” under the Rule
• Describe the impact of the Rule on certain securitizations such as CLOs
• Develop the framework for a Volcker Rule compliance program

Suggested Prerequisites:None

Program Level:Foundational

Advance Preparation: None

Computers and Financial Calculators: N/A

Recommended CPE Credits: 7