The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, recently
signed into law, will affect both the financial institutions and
those regulatory agencies that oversee them.
On October 3, 2008, President Bush signed into law the
"Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008,"
far-reaching legislation that provides the Secretary of the
Treasury with wide authority to act in a manner designed to
stabilize the U.S. financial system and which entails great changes
for financial institutions and the regulatory agencies that oversee
them, consumer lending and corporate governance, and government
contracts and executive compensation.
Despite the historic nature of this legislation, Congressional
leaders expect further legislative action in the weeks and months
ahead. For example, The Wall Street Journal noted on
October 4, 2008: "Democratic lawmakers are planning to revamp
financial system regulations, with hedge funds, private equity
funds and investment banks all likely to
