John Heltman is the Washington Bureau Chief for American Banker. John previously edited American Banker Magazine and is the creator of American Banker's narrative podcast Bankshot. He was awarded the Grand Neal, the top honor bestowed by the Jesse H. Neal Awards, in 2019 for his narrative podcast series Nobody’s Home, which examines the economic and social impact of concentrated vacant housing. He was also named the 2019 McAllister Editorial Fellow at Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. He is a 2005 graduate of St. Mary’s College of Maryland and lives in Baltimore, Md.
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Hedge fund manager Scott Bessent, President-elect Donald Trump's pick for Treasury Secretary, will appear before the Senate Finance Committee for his confirmation hearing Thursday morning starting at 10:30 am.
January 16 -
In what is likely his final speech before resigning as chair of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., Martin Gruenberg warned that novel products and services heralded as "innovation" often lead to financial crises without appropriate attention to market and supervisory fundamentals.
January 14 -
Barr gave up his prestigious position as the Federal Reserve vice chair for supervision. In keeping his seat on the Board of Governors, he may have strengthened his hand in shaping banking regulation.
January 7 -
In their new book, "The New World Economy in 5 Trends," Koen De Leus and Philippe Gijsels predict a future in which neutral interest rates are higher, technology is transformative and the urgency of climate-change adaptation creates investment opportunities.
January 3 -
Economists say the U.S. economy is leaving 2024 healthy, with unemployment low, inflation manageable and growth robust. Unknown variables — including the depth and scope of President-elect Donald Trump's immigration and tariff policies — could change that course, but likely not until 2026.
December 23 -
The Federal Reserve's Federal Open Market Committee cut the federal funds rate by 25 basis points Wednesday, and Fed Chair Jerome Powell will take questions from reporters following the meeting.
December 18 -
The populist strain that has long animated the left wing of the Democratic party seems to have migrated to the Republican center, benefiting President-elect Donald Trump in this year's election. We're about to find out whether right-wing populism is as earnest as its left-wing predecessor.
December 17 -
Allegations of regulators pressuring banks to drop clients and customers because of political views or ties to legal-but-disfavored industries have sparked outrage among conservatives. But requiring banks to serve absolutely everyone would change the nature of banking in ways that aren't conservative.
December 10 -
Federal Reserve Gov. Michelle Bowman said Friday that regulators — chief among them the Fed itself — need to do more to combat check fraud, particularly the problem of smaller banks not being reimbursed by larger banks whose checks are altered.
December 6 -
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is giving the funds to more than 4.3 million consumers harmed by a defunct credit-repair conglomerate, the largest-ever distribution from the bureau's victim-relief fund.
December 5
