Ending the COVID-19 pandemic and restarting the nation’s economy will be the “overriding” top priorities for the banking industry in the year ahead, as outlined in ABA’s Blueprint for Growth, ABA President and CEO Rob Nichols told attendees at ABA’s virtual Washington Summit.
“We will continue to have conversations on specific banking rules and regulations, and making sure those are appropriately calibrated to support a robust recovery—because we know that when it comes to creating economic growth, one of the key ingredients is a fully functioning, thriving banking sector,” Nichols said. “But we know that everything is going to flow from defeating COVID and re-starting the economy, so we’ll be going into every one of these policy conversations with that overarching goal in mind.”
He emphasized that the industry’s top priority aligns with those of the Biden administration, and lawmakers from both parties—and expressed the industry’s commitment to working toward that shared goal. “We know that we won’t always agree on everything,” Nichols said. “But when it comes to stopping the coronavirus and kick-starting a dynamic, inclusive recovery, we are all on the same side.”
