House task force presses regulators on treasury-market resilience, central clearing and leverage rules

The House task force on monetary policy held a hearing on June 2, 2025, to examine recent volatility in the U.S. Treasury market and potential regulatory and market-structure responses, with witnesses and members pressing for timely implementation of central clearing and debating targeted changes to bank leverage rules.

The hearing matters because the Treasury market is the foundation of global finance: it sets the risk-free benchmark for other assets, supports Federal Reserve operations and allows the U.S. government to borrow cheaply. Lawmakers and market participants told the task force that recent episodes of stress — including a pronounced three-day move in April — show gaps in surge capacity and operational plumbing that could raise financing costs for taxpayers if not addressed.

Witnesses from the private sector and academia urged a mix of public- and private-sector changes. Nathaniel Werfel, head of market structure and product for global collateral at BNY, said the SEC's central-clearing rule is "the most significant change to treasury market structure in decades" and that "getting implementation right" is essential to realize…