The Week in Deregulation: Who Won, Who Lost, and the Idea Scorecard
A ranked look at the week's seven deregulation moves, who won and lost, how the six FMR stock Ideas have done since entry, and the dated catalysts ahead.
The SEC Just Let Brokers Put a Target Return in Writing
The SEC approved a fourth exception to FINRA's ban on projected returns on Oct 15, 2026, after dropping three express guardrails. The mechanism, the bear case and one stock idea.
The FDA Wrote Salt Into 139 Food Recipes. Now You May Swap It.
FDA finalized a rule letting manufacturers replace salt in 139 standardized foods, three and a half years after proposing it. The recipe mandate, the cost, the bear case and one stock idea.
A Judge Said Engine Cleaner Is Not Fuel. The CPSC Just Agreed.
CPSC ruled engine cleaners and fuel stabilizers are not liquid fuels under the Portable Fuel Container Safety Act, 13 months after a federal court said so. The $545.7 million question, the bear case and one stock idea.
FERC Told PJM You Cannot Curtail Your Way Out of a Shortage
FERC rejected PJM's curtail-first plan for new data centers. A private Google and Constellation deal added 890 MW of nuclear supply with no mandate. The market read, the bear case and one stock idea.
The CFTC Just Wrote the Line Between a Market and a House
The CFTC proposed that event contracts are swaps and excluded casino-style gambling. The dividing line is who sets the price.
The SEC Wants to Let Bond Funds Skip the Dealer Toll Booth
The SEC proposed to let bond funds trade with sister funds again, skipping the dealer. The estimated saving is $173 million a year. The fine print on pricing and public data is where the real story sits.
The EPA Is Days From Killing Its Own Methane Leak Watchdog
Zeldin's Santa Fe announcement names the programs that will not survive the second-part rollback: the Super Emitter Program, marginal well standards, and the $45 billion claim that frames them.
Congress Stalled, So the CFTC Started Writing the Crypto Rulebook
The CFTC's 109-page ANPRM builds the exchange framework the Clarity Act would have mandated, using authority it has held since 2010 without ever writing rules under it.
The SEC Just Detached Its Post-Madoff Audit Backstop
The 760-page crypto custody proposal rebuilds who can hold crypto assets. It also quietly removes the PCAOB gate on custody-rule accountants, a screen installed after Madoff.
The Treasury Just Killed Its Two Biggest Crypto Surveillance Rules
FinCEN withdrew the unhosted wallet reporting rule after six years of limbo and the Section 311 mixing designation with it. The gates stay open wider, the surveillance towers stay unmanned, and the BSA skeleton still stands.
The SEC Just Proposed Six New Ways Around the Wealth Test
CPA, CFA, CFP, Series 79, Series 86/87, and a new FINRA exam: the knowledge test is quietly replacing the money test, and a companion proposal opens the performance fee door too.