On March 31 and April 15, we wrote blog posts (which can be accessed here and here) about a D.C. federal judge’s decision to rescind MetLife’s systematically important financial institution (SIFI) status. On October 24, a D.C. Circuit three-judge panel heard oral argument of the appeal of that decision. The federal government advocated to reinstate MetLife’s “too big to fail” designation by arguing that regulators were not required to prove the insurance giant was likely to collapse before imposing enhanced federal oversight. Conversely, attorneys for MetLife argued that the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) acted arbitrarily by not partaking in any threshold analysis of how MetLife would be vulnerable to a financial collapse.
Continue Reading Metlife May Not Be “Too Big To Fail,” But Is It “Too Big To Handle” For State Insurance Regulators?

As an update to our March 31 post about MetLife shedding its SIFI designation, the court recently released its opinion detailing the reasoning behind its order. The court found two reasons to overturn MetLife’s designation as a systemically important financial institution (SIFI), which the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) placed on MetLife after finding that “material financial distress” at MetLife could “pose a threat to the financial stability of the United States.”
Continue Reading Court: MetLife’s Designation As A SIFI Ignored Government’s Own Rules And The Costs Of Designation

Yesterday, a federal judge in the District of Columbia rescinded a regulatory order designating MetLife as a systemically important financial institution (“SIFI”). In December 2014, MetLife joined AIG and Prudential as the only insurance companies designated as SIFIs – a designation that subjected the insurers to additional regulation by the Federal Reserve and additional capital