Dear friend,
I am thrilled to share some exciting news as we wrap up a busy May: for the sixth consecutive year, Washingtonian Magazine has named our President, Co-founder, and CEO, Dennis Kelleher, one of Washington DC's 500 Most Influential People.
What makes this recognition especially meaningful is where Dennis appears on that list. He remains the only public interest nonprofit leader named in the Banking & Finance category—a space dominated by the most powerful, connected, and well-financed forces in Washington and the financial world, including representatives of JPMorgan Chase, Nasdaq, Blackstone, Citigroup, and the nation’s largest banking trade groups.
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This recognition is a testament to the strategy that has made Better Markets an influential voice in Washington’s power centers that all too often exclude the interests of Main Street Americans—and to our team of deeply experienced experts who are substantive counterweights to the financial industry’s special interests and relentless advocates for an economy that works for all Americans and not just those with high-priced, well-connected (and, yes, very influential) lobbyists. Because of Better Markets’ work, Main Street Americans have a meaningful seat at the table when decisions are made that impact their economic and financial lives.
That’s what our work is about: promoting a vibrant economy that delivers opportunity and prosperity, a financial system that supports the real productive economy, and an inclusive, democratic policymaking process that prioritizes the concerns of Main Street Americans, not the special interests. Through Dennis’s leadership, as recognized by Washingtonian Magazine in each of the last six years, Better Markets is proud to be that voice fighting for Main Street, and economic security, opportunity, and prosperity for all Americans.
And with your support, we will continue to lead the way.
Thank you,
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Emily Russell
Director of Development
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Newly confirmed Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh poses a serious threat to Main Street, the financial system, and the economy: he failed to act during the pre-2008 housing bubble despite having the power to do so, supported the reckless deregulation that caused the worst financial crash since 1929, and has consistently prioritized Wall Street over the interests of hardworking Americans. His views haven’t changed and, with his proposed "regime change" at the Fed and obsequiousness to the President, Warsh is going to usher in an era of risk that will endanger the jobs, savings, and livelihoods of all Americans.
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A recent amicus brief we filed in court highlights how prediction markets like Kalshi are nothing more than illegal sportsbooks. As they have for decades, states like Tennessee should have the authority to regulate gambling in whatever form it appears under existing gaming laws; Congress never intended the CFTC to be the national gambling regulator. The CFTC should get back to basics and focus on its actual mandate: overseeing the markets that govern everything from the price of gas in your car to the cost of milk on your kitchen table. Nobody needs another agency cheerleading unregulated casinos that fuel insider trading, problem gambling, and electoral corruption.
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We recently applauded California Governor Newsom's executive order on AI workforce development. While not perfect, the EO prioritizes data collection, early warning systems for displaced workers, and dedicated support for small businesses. It’s the kind of proactive, evidence-based policy that Washington should be adopting but isn't. We must lead the way in protecting workers from AI-driven job losses and support states that are effectively stepping in where our national leaders won’t.
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The SEC spent years fighting to cut the fees exchanges charge investors, winning in court and saving Americans an estimated $2 billion. Now, stock exchange MEMX is brazenly asking the SEC to ignore its own rule. If the SEC caves, it will once again abandon its mission to protect investors, rather than the Wall Street middlemen gouging them.
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Better Markets in the News
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Depriving shareholders of timely quarterly material information will only leave the so-called owners of public companies in the dark, result in market prices being stale if not wrong, and give corporate executives more time to allow problems to fester unseen until greater losses are suffered by shareholders. That’s why we say that the S.E.C. under Chair Atkins stands for Shareholder Exploitation Commission.
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Fighting for the Public Interest at the Rule Writing Agencies
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Each month our legal team outlines some of the top cases we're keeping an eye on, the Amicus "Friend of the Court" Briefs we have filed, and why everyone with a bank account, credit card, mortgage loan, or retirement loan should be interested in those cases.
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| While Congress was only in session for two weeks in May, they had a full schedule with Committee markups, important votes, and oversight hearings. Congress focused on sports gambling in prediction markets, crypto legislation, and confirming the new Federal Reserve Chair, Kevin Warsh.
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On May 22, 2026, Benjamin Schiffrin sat down with Eric Horvath and Lucas Turner-Owens of the Impacted podcast to discuss what’s at stake with the expansion of private markets into retirement investments, following the new Department of Labor guidance rules.
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How Prediction Markets and Crypto Firms Steamrolled a Watchdog Agency New York Times, May 24, 2026
As Fed leashes bank examiners, Wall Street pushes for more wins, sources say Reuters, May 26, 2026
Less Noted, Just as Radical: The High Court's Rightward Economic Shift The New Republic, May 8, 2026
She Blew the Whistle on Deutsche Bank to the SEC. Her Award: $0. The Wall Street Journal, May 4, 2026
Financial regulators need more visibility into private credit markets American Banker, May 18, 2026
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