• Tech-focused lender SVB Financial Group said it would post a $1.8 billion after-tax loss on the sale of investments and seek to raise $2.25 billion in funds amid a decline in customer deposits, an announcement that sent its stock tumbling and caused a ripple through markets, with the four biggest U.S. banks losing $52 billion in market value. (The Wall Street Journal) Europe’s biggest banks lost $40 billion in value as global traders reacted to the news, and venture capital firms Canaan and the Founders Fund have advised their portfolio companies to move money out of SVB, according to sources familiar with the matter. (Bloomberg)
• President Joe Biden released a $6.8 trillion federal budget proposal, consisting of $5 trillion in proposed tax increases and a target to reduce budget deficits by almost $3 trillion over a decade. (The New York Times) Biden’s budget plan did not propose major tax or spending changes related to the Social Security program, which is set to run out of funds in just over the next decade, despite campaign promises to shore up the program, though he said during a speech in Philadelphia that he guarantees he “will protect Social Security and Medicare without any change.” (The New York Times)
• The Senate confirmed Danny Werfel as commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service in a 54-42 vote, putting him in position to lead the agency through a complete overhaul, propelled by $80 billion in new funding. (CNN)
• Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michael Barr said during an event that the Fed is building a “specialized team of experts” to oversee the crypto industry, and warned of “tremendous disruptions” if stablecoins were to become widely used before regulations are in place. When asked if the central bank should have been more attuned to crypto concentration issues at certain banks, Barr, without mentioning the collapse of Silvergate Capital Corp., said the Fed gives more leeway to small banks. (CoinDesk)

How U.S. government spending has ballooned since 1980

Axios

Under legal threat from GOP lawmakers, Mastercard and Visa pause plan to track gun sales

Nathaniel Meyersohn and Matt Egan, CNN

Visa, Mastercard and Discover announced they will pause a plan to implement a new merchant category code for the nation’s gun retailers after political pressure from Republicans.

House Republicans target the CFPB as the agency takes aim at ‘junk fees’

Chelsey Cox, CNBC

Lawmakers discussed ways to reform, or altogether defund, the nation’s foremost consumer protection agency on Thursday, as the regulator takes aim at illegal “junk fees” levied on consumers. A subcommittee of the House Financial Services Committee is considering nearly 10 legislative proposals to change the nearly 13-year-old Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, as Republicans and critics outside the Capitol accuse the agency of overreach, insufficient rulemaking and a lack of accountability.

Fear Over Social Security’s Future Leads Some to Claim Benefits Early

Anne Tergesen, The Wall Street Journal

Filing for benefits before full retirement age is a gamble, say economists and financial advisers.

SEC Is Focusing on Earnings Manipulation by Companies

Jean Eaglesham, The Wall Street Journal

Regulators are scrutinizing whether companies are manipulating financial results to meet Wall Street targets, as a profit-squeeze amps up pressure on executives to “make the numbers.”

US senators blast Treasury’s failure to move faster on climate risks

Andrea Shalal, Reuters

Three U.S. senators blasted the Treasury Department on Thursday for its failure to act more swiftly to counter climate risks, and urged Secretary Janet Yellen to appoint a new climate counselor to lead the effort.

SEC Asks Justices To Hear New Challenge To In-House Courts

Jessica Corso, Law360

The U.S. Supreme Court should review a Fifth Circuit decision declaring the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s in-house courts unconstitutional because the ruling “cast a cloud” over all federal agencies that use such tribunals, the SEC told the high court on Thursday.

Jobs Report to Show U.S. Economy’s Momentum in February

Sarah Chaney Cambon, The Wall Street Journal

Recent figures point to acceleration with strong jobs growth, firming inflation and higher consumer spending.

Inflation Is Stickier Than Previously Thought, NY Fed Study Shows

Jonnelle Marte, Bloomberg

Inflation seems poised to stick around for longer than previously expected, according to new research from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

Who Is Janice Eberly, Leading Candidate for a Top Federal Reserve Job?

Harriet Torry, The Wall Street Journal

Former Obama administration official has studied effects of Fed stimulus policies

Treasury releases ‘Greenbook’ on Biden’s tax proposals

Michael Cohn, Accounting Today

The so-called Greenbook includes provisions that would raise taxes on high-income taxpayers as well as corporations, including on stock buybacks, with the goal of generating nearly $3 trillion in deficit reduction over the next decade. However, the budget proposal doesn’t address the thorny issue of tax extenders with most of the temporary provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 due to expire in 2025.

San Francisco Fed chief watching for further signs inflation is cooling

Victoria Guida, Politico Pro

Mary Daly said data in the second half of last year seemed to suggest the economy and inflation were starting to slow.

5.2% pay raise, blocking future Schedule F and more from the 2024 budget request

Drew Friedman, Federal News Network

The White House is proposing the largest pay raise for federal employees and military service members in more than 40 years.

Remote work helped boost birth rates for wealthier and more educated women

Chloe Berger, Fortune

The expectation that women must have and do it all is as outdated as shoulder pads on blazers, but it seems remote work can allow working women to have more: the freedom and flexibility to balance a career and children a bit better than the office ever did.

JPMorgan must hand over CEO Dimon’s records in Jeffrey Epstein lawsuit

Jonathan Stempel, Reuters

A U.S. judge on Thursday ordered JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) to hand over more documents concerning Chief Executive Jamie Dimon to the U.S. Virgin Islands for the territory’s lawsuit accusing the bank of aiding in Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking.

Ex-Goldman banker Ng sentenced to 10 years prison in 1MDB corruption case

Luc Cohen, Reuters

Former Goldman Sachs banker Roger Ng was sentenced to 10 years in prison on Thursday, after he was convicted of helping loot billions of dollars from Malaysia’s 1MDB sovereign wealth fund.

Credit union branches welcome a surprising demographic: millennials

Ken McCarthy and Frank Gargano, American Banker

The wide-scale adoption of digital and mobile channels has curtailed foot traffic in many credit union branches, but one age group is walking through the doors more than ever: the millennials.

Inflation-Protection Funds Struggle to Perform as Advertised

Eric Wallerstein, The Wall Street Journal

Disparate strategies trading bonds, derivatives and stocks offer varied returns

Wall Street examines risks around short-dated options as warnings rise-sources

Carolina Mandi and Laura Matthews, Reuters

An explosion in trading in a type of equity derivative security in recent months has prompted Wall Street players and a major clearing house to examine the potential risks it poses, according to two sources familiar with the matter.

FTC Seeks to Block Intercontinental Exchange’s $11.7 Billion Black Knight Deal

Dave Michaels and Alexander Osipovich, The Wall Street Journal

The Federal Trade Commission voted Thursday to sue to block Intercontinental Exchange Inc. from completing its $11.7 billion acquisition of mortgage software provider Black Knight Inc. The antitrust agency said the deal would lead to higher prices for software that lenders use to generate mortgages. Higher prices would be passed on to home buyers, the FTC said.

Foreclosures fall as equity protects many borrowers

Bonnie Sinnock, National Mortgage News

Fewer borrowers started down the road that could lead them to lose homes through the traditional default process in February than in January. However, compared to numbers from the same time last year, levels for both this category and completions rose markedly.

Global house prices set to extend declines, risk of more with higher rates: Reuters poll

Hari Kishan, Reuters

Home prices in several major markets will extend their decline this year, according to a global Reuters poll of property analysts who either predicted slightly steeper drops or kept their view steady from a survey three months ago.

Sick of paying all kinds of fees on top of rent? The Biden administration is urging the housing industry to limit or disclose extra costs.

Emma Ockerman, MarketWatch

An open letter from HUD Secretary Marcia Fudge concerning extra rental costs aligns with the Biden administration’s crackdown on so-called junk fees.

U.S. DOJ Appeals New York Judge’s Decision to Approve Voyager’s Sale to Binance.US

Cheyenne Ligon, CoinDesk

The appeal comes just one day after Judge Michael Wiles gave Voyager Digital the go-ahead to sell its assets to Binance.US.

More than $70 billion wiped off crypto market in 24 hours as bitcoin drops 8% below $20,000

Arjun Kharpal, CNBC

Bitcoin fell below $20,000 on Friday, hitting a near-two-month low, after a stock market sell-off in the U.S. and the collapse of a crypto-focused lender.

New York AG goes after the Ethereum blockchain

Bradley Dale, Axios

A lawsuit against a cryptocurrency exchange by New York State looks a lot more like a referendum on the world’s second biggest blockchain, Ethereum.

U.S. Treasury Department Proposes 30% Excise Tax on Crypto Mining Firms

Nikhilesh De, CoinDesk

President Joe Biden unveiled his 2023 budget proposal on Thursday.

Senior U.S. House Republican Says CBDCs Could Be ‘Weaponized’ as Political Tool

Jesse Hamilton, CoinDesk

Majority Whip Tom Emmer is seeking to halt the Federal Reserve’s ability to issue a new digital dollar.

Foreign doors open for crypto as US cracks down

Bradley Saacks, Semafor

Saudi Arabia, Japan, and France are among the countries wooing crypto companies, with representatives from those nations getting in touch with Binance, Coinbase, and others about creating friendly regulatory frameworks as well as potential incentive packages to relocate or expand their presence, people familiar with the matter said.

Judge to weigh Bankman-Fried’s trial schedule, bail conditions at hearing

Luc Cohen, Reuters

A U.S. judge is expected on Friday to consider what restrictions Sam Bankman-Fried should face while free on bail, and whether the FTX cryptocurrency exchange founder’s Oct. 2 fraud trial should be pushed back.