Money Talk: SEC chair Mary Jo White announces plans to resign after Obama leaves office

Editor’s note: Each Monday, Talk Business & Politics provides “Money Talk,” a wrap-up of banking and financial news. 

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SEC CHAIR MARY JO WHITE ANNOUNCES PLANS TO RESIGN AFTER OBAMA LEAVES OFFICE
As President-elect Donald Trump prepares to take office next year, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Mary Jo White, announced last week that she intends to leave at the end of the Obama administration after nearly four years as the agency’s head.

Under White’s leadership, the SEC adopted transformative rulemakings that addressed major issues highlighted by the financial crisis. In addition to completing the vast majority of the agency’s mandates under the Dodd-Frank Act and all of its mandates under the JOBS Act, White also advanced other critical rulemakings initiatives and built robust and effective frameworks for the SEC’s regulatory regimes going forward.

The federal securities regulatory agency has also instituted a new approach to enforcement that has resulted in greater accountability and record actions through, among other things, the use of admissions of wrongdoing and enhanced data analytics and technology. White became the 31st Chair of the SEC in April 2013.

ONLINE FRAUD ATTEMPTS IN U.S. EXPECTED TO JUMP 43% DURING HOLIDAY AS CHIP CARD GROWS
As the Christmas shopping season gets underway, global retailers can expect a 12% growth in online fraudulent activity compared with the same period last year — and lower ticket prices on fraudster-targeted gifts and products, according to new benchmark data from ACI Worldwide. Key findings from the survey show Card Not Present (CNP) global online fraud attempt rates are expected to increase 12% by volume over the same peak holiday period in 2015 with sales to increase by nearly the same rate (13%) in 2016.

In the U.S., CNP fraud attempt rates are expected to increase by 43% by volume following the U.S. adoption of EMV chip cards, which protects card data through encryption. The survey says fraud is shifting online as fraudsters are more effectively deterred from in-store fraud. Attempted fraud average ticket value (ATV), or a retailer’s average size of individual sales by credit card, is expected to decline from $239 to $219, an 8% decrease.

Fraudsters are expected to focus on cosmetics, cordless headphones, sneakers and other lower-priced that can be easily resold on the black market or via auction websites.

MORE U.S. MORTGAGE SERVICING TO GO TO NON-BANKS IN 2017
Responsibility for servicing U.S. mortgage loans will rest more and more with non-banks amid an environment of continued regulatory scrutiny next year, industry experts explained during a recent U.S. RMBS servicer roundtable hosted by Fitch Ratings.

The overwhelming consensus (89%) of panelists at Fitch’s roundtable agreed that nonbank servicers will continue to take market share from banks in 2017. That said, the source of non-bank portfolio growth is evolving. Increased regulation has become a significant operational burden across the industry and has driven servicing costs higher. However, the vast majority of roundtable attendees believe that regulation has led to improved servicing quality and has provided benefits to consumers.

Another focal point was servicing technology, with most attendees agreeing that technological improvements are needed in 2017. That means technology costs will grow. Most servicers remain dissatisfied with current technology offerings, but regulatory compliance needs will drive more technology spending for servicers.