Forced arbitration, JPM's contrarian move, M&A as recruiting tool: Top stories of the week

August 30, 2019 4:56 PM

Wells Fargo pushes wrongly accused N.J. pastor toward arbitration

Jeff Edwards, Parsippany United Methodist Church

A pastor who was falsely arrested for check fraud because of errors made by Wells Fargo employees may be forced to resolve legal claims against the bank in arbitration. The case renews questions about banks' use of the process.

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JPMorgan's contrarian move: Stockpiling securities

Changes in size of bank securities portfolios from 2Q18-2Q19

The bank started buying more Treasurys and mortgage-backeds over a year ago, long before talk about rate cuts. What did it know that its rivals didn't?

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GSE bailout was really a stickup

The Treasury's takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac left legacy shareholders holding the bag.

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Consumer groups, lenders find common cause against CFPB mortgage provision

Kathy Kraninger, director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), speaks during a discussion at the Bipartisan Policy Center in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Wednesday, April 17, 2019. Kraninger, confirmed in December by the Senate, took over an agency created by the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act that regulates everything from credit cards to mortgages. Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg

Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg

Though advocates and industry are rarely aligned, they are starting to coalesce around a plan that would call for the elimination of the CFPB's 43% debt-to-income limit as part of its qualified mortgage rule.

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Trump administration takes giant step backward on racial equality

A First Texas Homes Inc. "Sold" sign is displayed in front of a new home at the Creeks of Legacy development in Prosper, Texas, U.S., on Saturday, Nov. 17, 2018. Hot markets are cooling fast as interest rates rise. In the great housing slowdown of 2018, shoppers are reclaiming the upper hand, after years of soaring prices that placed most inventory out of reach for many families. Photographer: Laura Buckman/Bloomberg

Laura Buckman/Bloomberg

Revamping the doctrine of disparate impact doctrine, as HUD proposes, would gut fair housing enforcement.

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Regulators aren't done rolling back Volcker Rule

Jelena McWilliams, chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), listens during a House Financial Services Committee hearing in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Thursday, May 16, 2019. A top Democratic lawmaker yesterday questioned whether the Federal Reserve Vice Chairman can be trusted when he says leveraged lending isn't a current threat to the financial system, pointing to his failure to foresee similar dangers before the credit crisis a decade earlier. Photographer: Anna Moneymaker/Bloomberg

Anna Moneymaker/Bloomberg

The agencies handed banks a significant victory when they finalized revisions to the Dodd-Frank proprietary trading ban, but officials also plan to re-propose changes to the "covered funds" section of the rule.

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