Supervision & Ratings
Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act
Also known as Dodd-Frank
The Dodd-Frank Act (Public Law 111-203, July 2010) is the comprehensive financial reform law passed in response to the 2008 financial crisis. It restructured US financial regulation, created the CFPB and Financial Stability Oversight Council, and instituted enhanced prudential standards for the largest banks.
Formula
Dodd-Frank is not a single rule but a framework. Major components: Title I (systemic-risk regulation, FSOC, OLA), Title II (orderly liquidation authority), Title VI (Volcker Rule), Title VII (OTC derivatives reform), Title VIII (financial market utility regulation), Title X (CFPB), Title XIV (mortgage reform — qualified mortgages, ATR), and many others.
Why it matters
Dodd-Frank is the most significant US financial law since the 1930s. It created the modern bank supervisory framework: enhanced capital and liquidity rules for large banks, the CCAR/DFAST stress test architecture, living wills for resolution planning, the Volcker Rule, and the CFPB. The 2018 EGRRCPA amendments substantially raised thresholds for several Dodd-Frank requirements.
How to interpret
Dodd-Frank's bank-supervisory impact varies dramatically by bank size. G-SIBs face the full set of enhanced prudential standards (SLR, LCR, NSFR, CCAR, living wills, TLAC). Banks $100-700B face a calibrated subset. Banks under $100B face limited enhanced standards. Most community-bank compliance burden comes from the mortgage-reform provisions and CFPB rules.
Thresholds
| Range | Label | Interpretation |
|---|---|---|
| G-SIB | Full framework | All enhanced prudential standards. |
| $100–$700B | Tiered framework | Calibrated set per 2019 tailoring rules. |
| $10–$100B | Limited framework | Selected enhanced standards. |
| < $10B | Minimal direct impact | Mostly mortgage and consumer rules. |
Worked example
Frequently asked
Did the 2018 EGRRCPA repeal Dodd-Frank?
No. EGRRCPA amended Dodd-Frank — raising the $50B threshold for enhanced prudential standards to $250B (with discretionary application $100-250B), exempting smaller banks from several reporting and stress-test requirements, and recalibrating other rules. The core architecture of Dodd-Frank remains.
What is the Volcker Rule?
Section 619 of Dodd-Frank, prohibiting US banks from proprietary trading and limiting investments in private equity and hedge funds. It took effect in 2014 with substantial complexity in defining market-making and hedging exceptions. 2019 simplification reduced the rule's compliance burden.
Why did Dodd-Frank create the CFPB?
Title X created the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to consolidate consumer-protection authority previously distributed across multiple agencies. The CFPB has authority over banks and most non-bank consumer financial services providers. Its rule-making and supervisory role significantly expanded the consumer-compliance burden for affected institutions.
Sources
- Public Law 111-203 (Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act)
- Public Law 115-174 (Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act, 2018)
See Dodd-Frank across 4,335 US banks
BankRegReports ranks every FDIC-insured institution by Dodd-Frank, refreshed quarterly within 48 hours of FFIEC release.