Kenneth H. Thomas, Ph.D., CEO of Miami-based Community Development Fund Advisors LLC, taught finance at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School for over 40 years. He is the author of The CRA Handbook.
While there are ways to improve the Community Reinvestment Act for the modern era, steps must be taken to ensure the law is not weakened in the process.
An OCC charter for fintechs requires firms to meet a “financial inclusion” standard instead of conventional Community Reinvestment Act requirements. That’s a problem.
The agency is seeking public comment on how to reform the Community Reinvestment Act — a big step forward without the Fed or the FDIC on board.
An OCC charter for fintechs requires firms to meet a “financial inclusion” standard instead of conventional Community Reinvestment Act requirements. That’s a problem.
There’s renewed focus on the relative importance that capital and liquidity should play in regulation, but the discussion misses another measure that should rank higher in bank evaluations.
The Treasury Department’s long-awaited report on modernizing the Community Reinvestment Act was heavy on glittering generalities but light on specifics, which explains why the report punted the real job of making needed reforms.
San Francisco Fed President John Williams is not suited to lead the most important of the regional Fed banks, given his inability to detect the phony-accounts problems at Wells Fargo. He also lacks Wall Street experience.
Reform of the Community Reinvestment Act should seek to establish a minimum standard for the volume of CRA activities a bank must complete in its assessment area.
Contrary to the view of some, technology has not rendered the Community Reinvestment Act obsolete. But everyone seems to agree that it should be reformed.
Without incentives to shoot higher, banks usually settle for "Satisfactory" on their Community Reinvestment Act exams, but many find that not getting a better grade has consequences.