Why It Matters

The American Fintech Council has retained Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP to lobby on its behalf, according to a new lobbying registration disclosure filed May 13, 2026. The LDA filing new registration covers financial institutions, investments, and securities, the core regulatory terrain for the fintech industry.

The AFC represents fintech companies operating at the intersection of technology and financial services. Its decision to bring on Akin Gump signals a more formalized external lobbying presence. The lobbying client disclosure does not list specific legislation or issue text, but the broad financial institutions issue code covers significant regulatory ground. Policy shifts in this space (bank-fintech partnerships, open banking, digital assets, consumer data) could directly affect AFC members.

The Lobbyists

The external lobbying team at Akin Gump includes four lobbyists:

  • Ed Pagano, Partner
  • Sam Olswanger, Senior Policy Adviser
  • Lauren Rubin, Senior Counsel
  • Zach Deatherage, Policy Adviser

No internal lobbying operation is noted in the lobbyist registration requirements filing.

Broader Context

The lobbying registration disclosure arrives during a notably active stretch for fintech on Capitol Hill. Member communications reviewed in the report paint a picture of sustained congressional engagement with financial services regulation.

Sen. Cynthia Lummis posted just ten days before the AFC's filing was signed, praising a Trump administration executive order she said would level the playing field for fintech companies against legacy institutions. Rep. Mike Flood announced CFTC Chairman Selig would address his Flyover Fintech 2026 conference, just 11 days before the AFC's registration was signed.

House Financial Services Committee Chair Rep. J. French Hill set the tone earlier in the window. In June 2025, he called for "clear rules of the road for digital assets" and the fintech business before the end of the summer. That regulatory clarity push has continued into 2026.

Between the Lines

Several threads of legislative and regulatory activity are running concurrently with the AFC's new federal lobbying registration.

On AI and financial services: Sen. Mike Rounds chaired a Securities, Insurance and Investments Subcommittee hearing in July 2025 titled "Guardrails and Growth: AI's Role in Capital and Insurance Markets." Rounds introduced the bipartisan Unleashing AI Innovation in Financial Services Act, which would create a regulatory sandbox for testing AI in financial services.

On capital markets: Rep. Ann Wagner, chair of the House Capital Markets Subcommittee, met with SEC Chair Paul Atkins in May 2026 to discuss her bipartisan INVEST Act. Rep. Byron Donalds introduced the Defining Dealer Act in April 2026, targeting SEC dealer definition rules, which he said created government overreach in financial markets.

On data privacy: The House Financial Services Subcommittee on Financial Institutions held a hearing on financial data privacy in June 2025, directly relevant to open banking and consumer financial data issues that touch AFC members.

On open banking: Rep. Ayanna Pressley weighed in on the CFPB's Open Banking Rule in March 2026, calling for stronger consumer control over financial data shared with fintech companies.

On bank leverage rules: Rep. Andy Barr led a bipartisan letter to the Fed and OCC urging leverage rule reform, a structural issue affecting bank-fintech partnerships.

The Bottom Line

The American Fintech Council is entering a formal external lobbying relationship with Akin Gump at a moment when financial services regulation is seeing significant congressional attention. The lobbying registration disclosure is broad, but the timing, combined with active legislative and executive action on fintech policy, suggests the AFC wants a seat at the table as those rules take shape.