Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision attends Bank of America private dinner during blackout period, raising compliance concerns

Golden Ten Data reported on June 20 that Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Bowman attended a private dinner hosted by Bank of America for its clients in New York on Wednesday evening local time. According to sources familiar with the matter, attendance at the dinner was by invitation only. Just hours earlier, the Federal Reserve had announced its latest policy decision. The dinner took place during the Fed’s official communications blackout period, which prohibits Fed officials from publicly commenting on the economic outlook or monetary policy for several days before and after meetings; the blackout period lasts until the day after the meeting concludes (Thursday). Although the Fed’s rules do not explicitly ban closed-door meetings, they require officials to avoid sharing personal policy views with anyone who might financially benefit from them, unless such views have already been made public. The rules also state that officials should not confer any reputation advantage on a company over its competitors. According to the Fed’s communications policy, policymakers are advised to exercise caution and strict adherence to this principle when arranging meetings with individuals who could profit from exclusive access to Fed officials, or when considering invitations from for-profit organizations or meetings not open to the public and the media. It remains unclear whether Bowman’s attendance at this dinner, as the regulator in charge of bank supervision, constituted a violation of these regulations.