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The popularity of hedge funds, particularly among institutional investors, propelled total assets under management to a record $2 trillion in the first quarter, according to a report from Hedge Fund Research Inc. of Chicago.

It looks like young investors may have been paying attention as the market crash threw baby boomers' futures into disarray.

The bank agreed to modify loans to struggling U.S. borrowers as part of a 2017 settlement. Instead, it’s receiving credit for financing new mortgages that likely would have been made anyway.

B. Riley FBR initiated equity coverage of the mortgage giant, citing housing finance reform proposals that could result in Fannie and Freddie Mac being released from conservatorship.

The moves are part of an ongoing effort by the Seattle bank to largely exit mortgage lending.

As the GSEs enter their 15th year in conservatorship, shareholders are wondering when they'll get their company back.

Leaders of the Bank Policy Institute and The Clearing House say their conferences are neither profit centers nor potential conflicts of interest for regulators in response to a recent BankThink piece that describes the meeting as an example of overly cozy relationships between banks and regulators.

A gathering in New York next week demonstrates the pay-to-play culture of high-end banking conferences.