Financial reform at a glance

Here's a rundown of the big package (from NYT and AP):

--Consumer protection: Creates a consumer bureau, housed within the Federal Reserve, that would write and enforce rules for most banks, mortgage lenders, and credit-card and private student loan companies (auto dealers are exempt from the bureau's oversight). Lenders could be required to provide plain-English disclosures, price comparisons for alternative products, and clear warnings before fees are assessed.

--Shareholder protections: Requires companies to have executive compensation set by independent directors. Also gives shareholders the opportunity to register concerns about compensation (already being done at some companies, to little effect).

--Too big to fail: Creates a process for the government to liquidate failing companies at no cost to taxpayers, which is similar to what the FDIC does when it liquidates failed banks. Certain hybrid securities would no longer be considered as Tier 1 capital, the top standard for gauging a bank's strength.

--Derivatives: These are the complex products that bet on whether something is going to go up or down. With few exceptions, trading in derivatives would have to occur on regulated exchanges. Banks can still trade derivatives for basic stuff like interest rates and gold and silver, but the more exotic areas would require funds from non-bank sources. The exotica include mortgage credit default swaps blamed that created such trouble.

--Financial regulation: Creates a council of regulators to watch for trouble, and gives the Fed new authority over large financial companies. Also, it merges the Office of Office of Thrift Supervision into the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. (This one sounds like a lot of paper-pushing).

--Ratings agencies: Pretty much business as usual. They'd have to register with the SEC, and there's something about increased liability standards. But the basic model in which banks pay ratings agencies to rate their new offerings stays in place.

WSJ also has a good rundown on the bill.