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thehill.com — The House Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE) this month sent letters to officials on K Street requesting detailed information on the lawmakers, all of whom sit on the Financial Services Committee or the Ways and Means Committee.

The letter seeks wide-ranging fundraising and campaign contribution data from lobbyists about their dealings with the eight legislators dating back to the beginning of last year.

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washingtonpost.com — An effort to force some of the nation's biggest banks to spin off their lucrative derivatives-dealing operations appears to be gaining traction, as members of a House-Senate conference begin finalizing details of far-reaching new financial regulations.

The measure, championed by Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.), was included in the financial overhaul bill recently passed by the Senate. It had been opposed by Obama administration officials, some lawmakers in both parties, multiple banking regulators and Wall Street. Lincoln is seeking to restrict federal aid to banks that operate as major derivatives dealers.

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politico.com — Derivatives language in the Wall Street reform bill — once widely expected to become a casualty of the formal conference process — picked up significant momentum Monday, securing the endorsement of two regional Federal Reserve Bank presidents.

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huffingtonpost.com — Consumer advocates are reacting harshly to a compromise Consumer Financial Protection Agency being proposed by Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd (D-Conn.). Dodd's proposal puts a variety of obstacles in front of the proposed agency, which would be called the Bureau of Financial Protection and housed in the Treasury Department. Without independence, the agency loses its ability to write or enforce strong rules.

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money.cnn.com — After shedding more than 30,000 workers over the past two-and-a-half years, is the job market on Wall Street finally turning a corner? It might be the case. Earlier this month, speculation surfaced that Bank of America was looking to boost its network of retail brokers that once made up Merrill Lynch's "thundering herd" following a number of employee defections to rivals. And Morgan Stanley, which has been bulking up its securities business in recent months, is expected to add several hundred more traders to the division over the next few years. Spokespeople for both companies would not confirm the reports, but experts who track employment trends on Wall Street suggest that banks and securities firms are indeed feeling comfortable enough these days to at least start contemplating the idea of adding workers.

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nytimes.com — Wall Street tactics akin to the ones that fostered subprime mortgages in America have worsened the financial crisis shaking Greece and undermining the euro by enabling European governments to hide their mounting debts. As worries over Greece rattle world markets, records and interviews show that with Wall Street’s help, the nation engaged in a decade-long effort to skirt European debt limits. One deal created by Goldman Sachs helped obscure billions in debt from the budget overseers in Brussels. Even as the crisis was nearing the flashpoint, banks were searching for ways to help Greece forestall the day of reckoning.

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