The federal courts have instated a $25 fee for transferring corporate bankruptcy claims. The decision was met with little fanfare — but it could pave the way to a financial transactions tax.

Critics of online alternative lenders argue that their underwriting models are unproven and that a financial crisis could bring the whole industry crashing down. But while Lending Club and other startups may be relatively new to the scene, they're no greenhorns.

Receiving Wide Coverage ... Gold Rush: Three armed robbers stole historic gold nuggets from Wells Fargo's corporate museum in San Francisco on Tuesday. The masked suspects crashed their sports-utility vehicle into the entrance of the museum and broke into the display case while holding a security guard at gunpoint, according to reports. At an estimated value of $10,000, the nuggets are hardly a staggering haul, but the New York Times notes they have sentimental value: "the…

A spate of recent account closings at churches and charities suggests that Operation Choke Point and other de-risking directives are causing collateral damage to faith-based organizations.

The traditional method of measuring mortgage denials is fundamentally flawed. Evaluating not just the quantity but also the quality of mortgage applicants can give a clearer picture of actual denial rates.

Receiving Wide Coverage ... Pushback Against ECB Rules: Last week's World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, gave European bankers unhappy with stricter capital rules a chance to air their grievances. The Financial Times reports bankers in Davos argued that tough capital requirements will render the European Central Bank's quantitative easing less effective. They say the initiatives work at cross-purposes: QE is meant to encourage investors to take on riskier assets that invigorate the economy, while the…

The Fed appears to have looked at Bitcoin as a means for real-time payments in the banking system but shelved the concept for now.

Federal Reserve officials have been calling on banks to strengthen their ethical cultures. The message will carry more weight if regulators are willing to turn the spotlight on their own practices.

A plan to tax the liabilities of systemically important banks could help curb risk to the financial system, but the president and Congress should first consider more realistic asset thresholds.

Wall Street Journal

Retailers large and small, not to mention the head of strategic partnerships at Visa, told the Journal that many more customers are using Apple Pay than other mobile-wallet services, such as Softcard, the mobile-wallet services formerly known as Isis that's backed by AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile. The reasons: Apple's consumer gadgets are popular; banks and credit unions have been aggressively marketing the services; and consumers' cybersecurity concerns after breaches at Home Depot and…

A recap of the informed opinions (and the discussions they generated) on BankThink this week.

Hacker groups like Anonymous have announced plans to target banks that are helping to finance ISIS and other terrorist organizations. But it is governments, banks and regulators that need to work harder at rooting out the sources of ISIS's funding.

Former Miss America Bess Myerson helped overhaul Citi's consumer loan contracts in the 1970s. Then she turned her attention to cleaning up the bank's collections unit.

Receiving Wide Coverage ... Canadian Invasion: The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times and Reuters (via the New York Times) all take a closer look at Royal Bank of Canada's decision to acquire City National in Los Angeles. RBC may have stubbed its toe in its previous American incursion with RBC Centura (which it later sold to PNC), but City National is a different play. The California bank has a big presence in wealth management, particularly managing…

Even if arbitration does turn out to be beneficial for many consumers, Americans should not lose their constitutional right to a day in court without being aware that they are doing so.