White House invites top lawmakers to discuss bank rules

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Top Republican and Democratic lawmakers will attend a bipartisan meeting with President Barack Obama on Wednesday to discuss proposed financial regulatory reform, the White House said on Tuesday.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi and House Democratic leader Steny Hoyer will be there for Obama's Democratic Party. Republicans will be represented by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Minority leader John Boehner.

Obama is keen to build on his momentum from the passage of landmark healthcare reform last month and wants to pursue tougher rules against banks to curb reckless risk-taking while beefing up protection for consumers.

McConnell, in a sign of Republican opposition, said earlier on Tuesday that a bill soon to be introduced on the Senate floor "must not pass".

The Senate is inching toward a final vote, possibly coming this month or next, on a sweeping bill that would impose tighter rules on banks and capital markets in response to the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression.

(Reporting by Alister Bull; Editing by Jackie Frank)