Ebrima Santos Sanneh

The Justice Department recategorized state and federally approved cannabis products from Schedule I to Schedule III, a move that falls short of full legalization but could ignite renewed interest from banks and credit unions in servicing state-legal cannabis businesses.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Wednesday defended cuts to the Community Development Financial Institution Fund in the president's 2027 budget, telling the Senate Appropriations Committee that the program had pursued a "partisan wish list."

Economists and policy analysts say a prolonged disruption in the Strait of Hormuz — and uncertainty about the duration of the conflict — could drive up inflation and further weaken consumer sentiment, which could weigh on bank earnings.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency sent an interim final rule to the Office of Management and Budget that would preempt a controversial Illinois state law banning the collection of interchange fees on taxes and tips interchange.

A rule banning bank examiners from using reputational risk in their examinations includes an exception for operational risks — another notoriously unquantifiable category of risk. Experts say the concession suggests the attempt to carve subjectivity out of bank examination may amount to a relabeling exercise.

A 21.2% spike in the price of gasoline was the biggest contributor to a 0.9% increase in the Consumer Price Index in March, according to a Friday report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The agency said other price increases were largely contained.

The Treasury Department Wednesday proposed a set of rules that would require stablecoin issuers to abide by risk-based anti-money-laundering programs similar to those that banks must employ, as well as secondary market monitoring and independent testing by issuers. 

The FDIC board voted unanimously to issue a proposal putting a rebuttable ban on bank-issuers paying yield on stablecoins, another narrowing AML requirements and a third prohibiting examiners using reputational risk in exams, outside of operational or financial risks.

The partnership between the long-established bank and the fintech brokerage will handle the development of the government-owned account platform behind the new government-seeded retirement accounts for children. 

New jobs in health care largely drove the gains, while the federal workforce and finance continued to shrink.

The proposal allows states substantial flexibility but sets guardrails against regulatory arbitrage.

Banks have a lot to celebrate in the operational risk framework, but advocates warn it cuts capital too far.

The regulator argues the plans were costly, too theoretical and ineffective, eliminating the financial crisis-era requirement as part of the Trump Administration's deregulatory push.

The Treasury's financial crimes enforcement wing proposed a rule Monday that would incentivize whistleblowers to come forth with information that could assist in cracking down on scams, fraud or money laundering, at a time of heightened geopolitical risk.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s Office of Inspector General said in a Thursday report that staffing cuts over the past year could strain supervision and the agency's response to a crisis.

VALT, a digital-oriented small-business lender founded by U.S. Bank veteran Matt Gediman, received approval for its denovo charter application from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency 120 days after its application, clearing a key regulatory hurdle at a time when regulators are encouraging the formation of more startup banks.

The Financial Stability Oversight Council Wednesday published a proposed guidance focused on designating activities rather than individual firms for heightened prudential standards, making it more difficult for the council to designate firms going forward.

Speaking at the Digital Asset Summit, the Comptroller of the Currency argued that part of his goal in shifting the agency's posture toward the crypto industry is to allow smaller financial institutions to engage in novel technologies, which he said will keep banks relevant.

The reported reversal comes after the industry worried verifying citizenship would strain banks and push customers out of the system.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. rolled back a 2009 policy that banned nonbanks from buying failed banks, a move the agency says aims to widen the bidder pool and cut failure costs.