Joe Adler

Readers sound off on fintechs entering the student loan market, the FDIC’s brokered deposit rules and a heated debate over the new CFPB leader.

The regulatory agencies are the last word on an exemption from the proprietary trading ban, and there are no signs they will expand it beyond small institutions.

Banks earned $62 billion in the third quarter thanks to tax reform and higher asset yields, while the Deposit Insurance Fund crossed a statutory threshold.

The already long list of potential challengers to President Trump in 2020 includes policymakers with a deep record on banking issues and those whose financial services views are a relative mystery.

Rep. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz., crafted a moderate message and will head to the Senate after having backed legislation providing banks with regulatory relief.

Several Senate, House and gubernatorial battles are of interest to financial firms. Here is a spotlight on specific contests, with updates as they become available.

The battle gaining the most attention Tuesday night will be which party controls the House next year. But other key races will help determine the makeup of the Senate Banking Committee.

Jelena McWilliams has signaled a thaw in the agency’s approach to industrial loan companies, but she said tech firms and other nonbanks seeking charters should face the same level of regulatory scrutiny as more traditional banks.

Questions surrounding Eric Blankenstein, a senior CFPB official whose racially charged writings from over a decade ago have led to calls for his resignation, have been referred to the agency's watchdog.

The uproar over the incendiary writings of a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau official have led to calls for his removal, but the agency’s interim chief says he won’t “let any outside group dictate who works here.”