“Pushback by the Securities and Exchange Commission is complicating a regulatory effort to investigate whether large asset managers should be labeled “systemically risky.”

“Chairman Mary Jo White and other top SEC officials have voiced skepticism of the idea, joining lawmakers from both political parties who suggest it is unnecessary. Their intervention has significantly bolstered efforts by the financial services industry to slow down the process by the Financial Stability Oversight Council to examine the issue.

“‘Everyone is throwing money at it,’ said Kip Weissman, a partner at Luse Gorman Pomerenk & Schick. ‘It’s a big issue for banks. It’s a big issue for asset managers.’

“SEC officials’ involvement raises a critical question: How influential can a primary regulator be when it comes to designating firms it regulates as a systemically important financial institution? Although FSOC has already designated three insurance companies as SIFIs, there was no federal insurance regulator to weigh in on the matter.”

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