Securities News

Departments of Insurance and Banking Combine to Become DISB

(Washington, DC) Mayor Anthony Williams yesterday signed into law a bill enacted by the Council of the District of Columbia that combines the functional operations of the Department of Insurance and Securities Regulation (DISR) with those of the Department of Banking and Financial Institutions (DBFI). The new agency will be named the Department of Insurance, Securities and Banking (DISB). Lawrence H. Mirel, currently the commissioner of Insurance and Securities, will head the new agency.

The expected benefits of the merger include creating a comprehensive approach to regulating financial services, products and transactions, many of which have banking, insurance, and securities features. The goal is to better protect the citizens of the District of Columbia and to enhance the economic development potential of the District by having a single regulator for both traditional and non-traditional financial products.

“The structure of the financial services industry is changing rapidly,” Mirel said. “To properly regulate the industry we need a consolidated regulatory agency, just as they have in leading financial countries such as Great Britain, Germany and Japan. By merging these two agencies the District will demonstrate that it is ready and able to regulate modern financial services organizations.”

In 1999 Congress enacted the Gramm-Leach-Bliley law, which tears down the wall of separation between banking and insurance that has existed since the 1930s. Over time this is expected to change the nature of financial services businesses, as new products are introduced that are not exactly insurance, not quite banking, not entirely investments, but a blend of each. The ability to regulate all of the financial services industries in the District through one agency will also enhance enforcement powers for the protection of District residents. The problems associated with coordinating enforcement efforts between agencies will be eliminated.

In the next three to six months, employees from DBFI will be relocated to DISR’s current headquarters at Union Center Plaza located at 810 First Street, NE.

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