Financial industry groups expressed broad support for the Department of Labor's asset-neutral, process-based proposal on fiduciary duties in selecting retirement plan investment options, while urging targeted changes before the rule is finalized. SIFMA and SIFMA AMG said the proposal reflects ERISA's focus on prudent fiduciary process and fiduciary discretion, and recommended clarifications to improve practical workability and reduce litigation risk. The groups said these refinements would help plan fiduciaries expand access to a broader range of investment opportunities, including private market assets, while maintaining strong participant protections.

Join expert speakers from SIFMA, Zoom, Webex by Cisco, RingCentral, Metrigy, and Theta Lake as they discuss the impacts on risk of AI in regulated organizations and the need to reimagine security and compliance in an AI-powered workplace.

US Treasury yields have fallen to a three-week low ahead of employment data that could influence the Federal Reserve's interest-rate decision under new Chair Kevin Warsh. The yield on 10-year Treasurys has dropped 25 basis points to 4.43% over the past two weeks amid optimism that progress in resolving the Iran-US conflict will lead to lower oil prices and eased inflation expectations.

Private equity firms are eyeing initial public offerings to clear a massive backlog of nearly 33,000 unsold portfolio investments, driving US IPO deal value in the first quarter to its strongest start since 2021. Anticipated mega-listings from high-profile companies like SpaceX, Anthropic and OpenAI have buoyed market sentiment and expectations for the remainder of 2026. However, narrow market windows, erratic conditions and mixed post-debut stock performances mean corporate sponsors must remain highly flexible regarding valuation and timing, market participants say.

Mergers and acquisitions have continued to perform well this year, driven by large deals, but challenges such as the war in Iran, shifting regulatory priorities and poor macroeconomic fundamentals could affect dealmaking, according to a WilmerHale report. Private equity and venture capital firms are under pressure to deploy capital and return funds to investors, and while artificial intelligence is a dominant market force, enthusiasm for new technologies could negatively affect some sectors.

The White House is currently assessing a preliminary initiative from the US Securities and Exchange Commission and Commodity Futures Trading Commission aimed at revisiting and potentially harmonizing reporting requirements for swaps and security-based swaps. According to a recent post from the US Office of Management and Budget, the measure is in a prerule stage, meaning it is open for public input before any formal rule proposal is issued. This review marks a step forward in interagency coordination, with both agencies signaling a commitment to a more unified regulatory approach.

Proposed Basel III endgame updates to the US G-Sib surcharge -- indexing metrics to GDP and using daily averages -- are unlikely to materially lower capital requirements but could reshape bank behavior, analysis says. The changes may reduce incentives for year-end balance sheet adjustments and push firms to reprice trading, funding and client activities rather than cut exposures.

US Federal Reserve officials have expressed skepticism that artificial intelligence will quickly solve inflation, noting that AI-driven demand for labor and equipment is more evident than productivity gains. St. Louis Fed President Alberto Musalem and San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly have warned against relying on future productivity to address current inflation, and Fed Gov. Lisa Cook has pointed out that AI investment could push prices higher.