Regulators Scale Back Obstacles for Boeing

Summary

---

WSJ What’s News PM Edition

Episode Title: Regulators Scale Back Obstacles for Boeing
Date: September 26, 2025
Host: Alex Osola

---

Overview

This episode provides a roundup of major business, finance, and political news, with exclusive reporting on upcoming deals, regulatory actions, and global political developments. The episode’s key theme highlights Boeing regaining some FAA authority years after the 737 Max crisis—a sign of tentative recovery for the troubled jetmaker. Additional topics include Electronic Arts’ potential $50 billion leveraged buyout, intensified regulatory scrutiny of US banks for alleged “debanking,” President Trump’s response to new DOJ indictments, and international headlines surrounding Israel.

---

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Electronic Arts Nearing Record-Breaking Leveraged Buyout

[00:18–02:34]

• Details: EA is close to finalizing a deal to go private, which could value the company at up to $50B—in what might be the largest LBO on record.
• Participants: Investors include Silver Lake and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.
• Market Context:
  • Recent years have seen few mega-deals due to high interest rates and volatile market conditions.
  • Quote: “There are tons and tons of companies inside of private equity funds that firms would love to sell right now, but the market has not been right for them to get out of these deals because they bought them when interest rates were very low.” – Miriam Gottfried, [01:49]
• Industry Insight: Inclusion of sovereign wealth funds is increasingly seen as stabilizing; complex deals involving many private equity firms have often stalled.

---

2. Crackdown on Bank ‘Debanking’ and Regulatory Sweeps

[02:34–06:38]

• Regulatory Action: US regulators are demanding extensive data from banks to identify potential politically or religiously motivated account closures.
• Context:
  • This is reportedly a direct response to President Trump’s claims that he and his family have been “debanked” by large banks.
  • Regulators are collaborating with the DOJ to investigate possible violations of civil rights laws, including the Equal Credit Opportunity Act.
• Scope: Requests span years of internal policies, customer complaints, and lists of closed accounts.
• Industry Response:
  • Banks argue accounts are closed for traditional risk reasons (credit, legal, anti-money-laundering), not for political or religious criteria.
• Potential Outcomes: Possible investigations, fines, or DOJ action, but formal charges remain uncertain.
• Notable Exchange:
  • Alex Osola: “Why are they asking for this? What indication is there that this is a problem?” [05:11]
  • Gina Heeb: “This is an issue for the president that is very near and dear to him. He has alleged that the largest banks have debanked him and his family.” [05:16]

---

3. Boeing Regains FAA Authority in Milestone for Recovery

[08:44–11:19]

• Industry Shift: Boeing will regain FAA authority to conduct final safety checks on 737 Max jets next week—a major step after years of post-crash oversight.
• Background:
  • The FAA removed this authority in 2019 following two fatal 737 Max crashes, largely due to design flaws and emerging concerns over manufacturing pressure and quality.
  • The temporary oversight aimed to restore regulatory confidence amid widespread questions about Boeing’s safety culture.
• Market Impact:
  • This change is seen as a vote of renewed regulatory trust and a notable win for Boeing’s recovery efforts.
  • The timing coincides with sizable new orders from Turkish Airlines and Norwegian Air Shuttle, though specifics weren’t disclosed.
• Industry Insight:
  • Andrew Tangel: “It’s a sign that they’re regaining trust from the regulator. It’s a significant early milestone for Boeing’s overall recovery.” [11:00]
  • Alex Osola: “Is it typical for plane manufacturers to have this sign off authority that Boeing had lost?” [10:24]
  • Andrew Tangel: “These inspections and sign offs are pretty routine... The inspection has been compared to a final walkthrough before you buy a house.” [10:29]

---

4. Political and Global Headlines

• Comey Indictment & Trump Comments:

  • DOJ indicted former FBI Director James Comey; Trump frames the move as “justice, not revenge,” signals more indictments (“corrupt radical left Democrats”) are likely.
  • Critics warn of a new level of politicization in DOJ prosecution. [03:00–03:40]

• Sinclair and Jimmy Kimmel Live:

  • Sinclair broadcasting resumes airing Jimmy Kimmel Live after a suspension related to comments on the death of an activist; insists decision was independent of government influence. [02:34]

• Consumer Sentiment & Market Snapshot:

  • Sentiment dropped in September due to inflation and job worries; nevertheless, stocks rebounded slightly today. [06:45]

• Netanyahu’s UN Speech:

  • Israeli PM Netanyahu sharply criticizes recent global recognition of a Palestinian state; draws a provocative analogy comparing it to "giving Al Qaeda a state one mile from New York City after September 11th. This is sheer madness. It’s insane and we won’t do it.” [08:26]

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Miriam Gottfried on buyouts:
  “There are tons and tons of companies inside of private equity funds that firms would love to sell right now, but the market has not been right for them... One thing that you’ll note about these deals...people think it’s preferable to have a sovereign wealth fund instead of too many private equity firms in the mix.” [01:49]
• Gina Heeb on regulatory focus:
  “This is an issue for the president that is very near and dear to him. He has alleged that the largest banks have debanked him and his family.” [05:16]
• Andrew Tangel on FAA oversight:
  “It’s a sign that they’re regaining trust from the regulator. It’s a significant early milestone for Boeing’s overall recovery and its attempts to turn the corner from these two crashes, but also a long string of quality issues.” [11:00]
• Benjamin Netanyahu at the UN:
  “Giving the Palestinians a state one mile from Jerusalem after October 7th is like giving Al Qaeda a state one mile from New York City after September 11th. This is sheer madness. It’s insane and we won’t do it.” [08:26]

---

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Electronic Arts buyout details: 00:18–02:34
• Banking regulatory sweep and debanking discussion: 02:34–06:38
• Investor sentiment & market snapshot: 06:45
• Netanyahu speech at the UN: 08:00–08:44
• Boeing’s restored FAA sign-off authority: 08:44–11:19

---

Conclusion

This episode captures several pivotal headlines shaping markets, industry, and policy. Central is Boeing’s regaining of FAA sign-off rights—a marker of corporate recovery after years of regulatory crisis. Major news includes a possible record-setting buyout for Electronic Arts, aggressive regulatory probes into banking practices, and intense commentary at the UN on Middle East policy. Throughout, WSJ reporters provide concise, detailed insight into the significance and context of each story.

Transcript

[Miriam Gottfried]

The US Forest Service is improving wildfire prediction models with Google AI. This is a new era of American innovation. Find out more at G CO AmericanInnovation.

[Alex Osola]

Electronic Arts is close to a deal to go private in what might be a record breaking leverage buyout. Plus why regulators are requesting information from banks going back years in an effort to find cases of debanking.

[Gina Heeb]

This is an issue for the President that is very near and dear to him. He has alleged that the largest banks have debanked him and his family.

[Alex Osola]

And after years of crises, Boeing has just cleared a key hurdle towards its Recovery. It's Friday, September 26th. I'm Alex Osola for the Wall Street Journal. This is the PM edition of what's news, the top headlines and business stories that move the world. Today, we're exclusively reporting that video game maker Electronic Arts is nearing a deal to go private in what would likely be the largest leveraged buyout of all time. That's according to people familiar with the matter. The people said that a group of investors, including private equity firm Silver Lake and Saudi Arabia's public investment fund, could unveil a deal for the company as soon as next week. Discussions on price are still underway, but two of the people said that EA could be valued at as much as $50 billion. Massive leverage buyouts like this one have been rare in recent years. Miriam Gottfried, who covers private equity for WSJ, says this is not necessarily a sign that deals like these are becoming more common now.

[Miriam Gottfried]

I think dealmakers would really like for it to be the watershed moment that causes deals to come rushing back, but I wouldn't say that we can speak so soon. There are tons and tons of companies inside of private equity funds that firms would love to sell right now, but the market has not been right for them to get out of these deals because they bought them when interest rates were very low. One thing that you'll note about these deals that are happening now is that a sovereign wealth fund is involved and people think it's preferable to have a sovereign wealth fund instead of too many private equity firms in the mix. And a lot of deals got derailed because there were too many cooks in the kitchen.

[Alex Osola]

TV broadcaster Sinclair said today it will end its preemption of Jimmy Kimmel Live and air the late night show again beginning tonight. ABC suspended the show earlier this month after remarks Kimmel made about the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. ABC brought back the show on Tuesday, but Sinclair said it still wouldn't carry it at that time. The company said today that its decision was, quote, unquote, independent of any government interaction or influence. Meanwhile, President Trump said today that he expects more people whom he views as enemies to face criminal indictments. It's his first comment since the Justice Department indicted former Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey yesterday, charging him with making false statements and obstruction. Trump had demanded Comey's prosecution and ousted the U.S. attorney who determined that there was insufficient evidence to bring the case. Speaking on the South Lawn of the White House, Trump said more indictments were coming for, quote, corrupt radical left Democrats and cast yesterday's indictment against Comey as justice, not revenge. The president's critics called his action an inflection point in the politicization of the Justice Department, with the president directing whom it should prosecute. We're exclusively reporting that banks are racing to respond to regulators broad requests for information on whether they closed customer accounts or denied people service or on political or religious grounds. The sweeping demands are part of President Trump's crackdown on alleged discrimination by banks. People familiar with the matter say that regulators are working with the Justice Department, which is looking for any violations of civil rights laws, including the Equal Credit Opportunity Act. According to a person familiar with the matter, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Is expected to send out letters to large banks as soon as this week. Gina. He covers banking for the Journal. Gina, what is the kind of information that these regulators are asking for?

[Gina Heeb]

Regulators are asking for a sweeping amount of information. In some cases, banks are being asked to send along internal policies that could amount to what the administration calls debanking, as well as complaints from their databases. Regulators are also reviewing their own databases for patterns that could indicate that certain customers have been unfairly cut off from access to accounts or rejected from accounts altogether. And in some cases, they're asking for entire lists of customers whose accounts were closed, not at their own request. The time span is really striking. Some of these requests are going back a number of years.

[Alex Osola]

Why are they asking for this? What indication is there that this is a problem?

[Gina Heeb]

This is an issue for the president that is very near and dear to him. He has alleged that the largest banks have debanked him and his family. He has said that they have unfairly cut off access to conservatives. And there have been just broad accusations that banks have kept a distance from certain industries, such as cryptocurrency and cannabis, although these industries were ones that regulators were not very comfortable with banks working with a couple years ago.

[Alex Osola]

What have banks said about this?

[Gina Heeb]

So banks say that they only close accounts because of credit risks, because of legal risks and to weed out money laundering and terrorist financing. They say they're not looking at political parties, ideological views, religion, the things that the administration is alleging.

[Alex Osola]

So these banks will have to respond to these letters. Presumably what happens after that?

[Gina Heeb]

Regulators are working with the Justice Department. Whether that leads to actual probes, formal charges remains to be seen. But we do know that DOJ is looking for violations of civil rights laws, and some of these regulators have explicitly said that there could be fines down the road.

[Alex Osola]

That was WSJ reporter Gina Heeb. Thanks, Gina.

[Gina Heeb]

Thanks for having me.

[Alex Osola]

The University of Michigan's monthly consumer survey found that views on the economy dropped in September as worries about high prices and the labor market weighed on household sentiment. Investors, however, were optimistic today as a rally helped US Stocks break their three day losing streak. The S and P and Dow both advanced about 0.6% while the tech heavy Nasdaq added 0.4%. For the week, all three indexes closed in the red. Coming up, federal regulators are giving some authority back to Boeing six years after tightening their oversight. That's after the break.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Tuesday on NBC. Jimmy Fallon and Bozma St. John host the highly anticipated new competition show. I hired 10 creatives from all walks of life. They will be battling it out to see who can impress the world's biggest brands. This is a huge opportunity. This is the battle for the next big idea.

[Andrew Tangel]

This is not play play. We're spending millions of dollars.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I'm so excited to embark on this adventure with all of you. Be the best idea on Brand with Jimmy Fallon. Series premiere Tuesday on NBC.

[Alex Osola]

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu struck a defiant tone speaking at the United nations today. Speaking to an almost empty room, he lashed out at countries that recognized a Palestinian state this week amid a crescendo of international criticism over Israel's conduct in the war in the Gaza Strip. In his speech, Netanyahu accused his critics of turning against Israel under pressure from their domestic populations, rising anti Semitism and a biased media.

[Benjamin Netanyahu]

Giving the Palestinians a state one mile from Jerusalem after October 7th is like giving Al Qaeda a state one mile from New York City after September 11th. This is sheer madness. It's insane and we won't do it.

[Alex Osola]

In an unusual move, the Israeli leader said he ordered that trucks with loudspeakers be deployed to Gaza so that hostages could hear him as he called for them to be freed. He's scheduled to meet with President Trump on Monday. Boeing has secured sizable aircraft orders from Turkish Airlines and Norwegian Air Shuttle. The company has announced today a boost for the jet maker as it seeks to revamp its business. The companies didn't disclose financial terms, but buyers typically receive steep discounts for big aircraft orders. Another promising sign for Boeing. The company is regaining authority from the Federal Aviation Administration to perform final safety checks on its 737 Max jets starting next week. For more, I'm joined now by Andrew Tangle, who covers aviation safety for the Wall Street Journal. Andrew, why did the FAA revoke this authority in the first place?

[Andrew Tangel]

It was 2019 and two 737 maxs had just crashed, in large part because of a flawed flight control system with a faulty design, not a factory problem. But at the same time, factory problems emerged. The FAA was concerned about the company's pressure on employees to produce aircraft and deliver aircraft. And while the plane was grounded in 2019, the FAA took this authority back and said, we are going to make sure all of the regulatory requirements are adhered to before we sign off on Boeing's ability to hand these planes over to airlines to fly passengers.

[Alex Osola]

Is it typical for plane manufacturers to have this sign off authority that Boeing had lost?

[Andrew Tangel]

Yes. These inspections and sign offs are pretty routine. Aerospace manufacturers, they have a subset of employees who act on behalf of the regulator. The inspection has been compared to a final walkthrough before you buy a house. It's not a very intrusive inspection, but this created a choke point for Boeing. FAA inspectors were finding problems with the aircraft.

[Alex Osola]

So now that Boeing does have this authority back, what does this mean for the company?

[Andrew Tangel]

It's a sign that they're regaining trust from the regulator. It's a significant early milestone for Boeing's overall recovery and its attempts to turn the corner from these two crashes, but also a long string of quality issues.

[Alex Osola]

That was WSJ reporter Andrew Tangle. Thanks, Andrew.

[Andrew Tangel]

Thanks for having me.

[Alex Osola]

And that's what's news for this week. Tomorrow you can look out for our weekly markets wrap up. What's news in markets? Then on Sunday, we're taking a look at the Trump administration's use of military force on boats in international waters to combat drug smuggling. That's in what's New Sunday and we'll be back with our regular show on Monday morning. Today's show is produced by Pierre Pienamet and Rodney Davis with supervising producer Jana Herron. Michael Lavalle wrote our theme music. Aisha Al Muslim is our development producer. Chris Insley is our deputy editor. And Falana Patterson is the Wall Street Journal's head of news audio. I'm Alex Osola. Thanks for listening.