Hannah Lang

A recent ruling declaring the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s structure unconstitutional signaled that a similar outcome awaits the Federal Housing Finance Agency. But the FHFA will argue in a new case that it does not deserve the same fate.

The council created by the Dodd-Frank Act to identify systemic risks launched a review of the market as part of an activities-based approach that shifts focus away from targeting individual firms.

The high court ruled June 29 that the structure of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau violated the separation of powers.

Many big banks say they will focus on existing customers in offering credit through the Federal Reserve’s emergency lending program for midsize businesses. Complex vetting and fear of being inundated are said to be among their concerns.

Randal Quarles, who is also chairman of the Financial Stability Board, said FSB members must do more to prepare for bank failures.

Banks participating in the Main Street Lending Program were able to register for and offer credit to businesses last month, but the Federal Reserve said Monday it was set to make the effort fully operational.

Legal experts say it is now more likely that the Supreme Court will strike down the single-director governance framework for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s regulator.

In a letter to Director Mark Calabria, 17 organizations requested an additional 60 days to weigh in on the proposal meant to strengthen Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's balance sheets post-conservatorship.

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said about 300 lenders have signed on to the program and that the central bank is committed to making adjustments that could attract more borrowers.

Some observers said the central bank should have suspended dividends entirely in response to an unprecedented economic emergency caused by the pandemic. Others said its more cautious moves were appropriate because big banks' capital is strong and the economy could bounce back.

In the most sweeping capital distribution order since the financial crisis, the Federal Reserve says it will prohibit big banks from buying back their stock in the third quarter and limit dividend payments to second-quarter levels.

Participation in the Main Street Lending Program for midsize companies is partly about public service, but the core business rationale is building "a banking relationship that continues on for some time," the Boston Fed chief says.

The senior official said the Federal Reserve’s gauge of a firm’s performance under economic recovery scenarios will affect decisions about its capital distribution, but individual results of the analysis will not be made public.

Worried about a lack of demand and that some of their customers are ineligible, community banks are still on the fence about participating in the effort to back loans for businesses recovering from the pandemic crisis.

The FHFA and FHA both announced for the second time that they were delaying the freeze to protect borrowers and renters during the coronavirus pandemic.

As they prepare to exit government conservatorship, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have enlisted the investment banks to help them boost capital and evaluate market opportunities.

The agency flagged faulty risk management and other issues at the Federal Home Loan Bank of Des Moines and Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco in exams conducted last year.

The central bank is bringing back examinations but said it will continue to conduct monitoring remotely "until conditions improve."

The central bank also asked for public feedback on a proposal to extend support for coronavirus relief loans to nonprofit organizations that were in sound financial condition before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The central bank is only now nearing the launch of the credit facilities after the effort was announced in April. But Chairman Jerome Powell said loans have been available through other means.