BankThink

The federal government is developing plans to require public companies to notify investors of climate and other environmental, social and governance-related risks. Lenders must take steps to understand the underlying issues and ensure borrowers disclose their own ESG exposures.

Policymakers need to stop attacking credit bureaus and take action against credit repair firms that use dubious tactics to wipe bad debt from consumers' credit reports. Such schemes both impair banks' ability to accurately underwrite loans and further hurt real victims of identity theft.

Distributed ledger projects in banking are few and far between — many have stalled and others remain experiments. Robert Townsend, who has worked with banks around the world and written a book about blockchain technology, explains some of the ways financial institutions could be using it, for instance in small-business lending and supply chain finance.

It is possible for financial firms to value the future of the planet and lift up marginalized communities while still generating strong returns for shareholders. Here's how.

They may look different, but for opening accounts, serving small businesses and satisfying consumers' need for cash, branches remain essential.

During lockdown, adoption of services like mobile order-and-pay, biometric authentication, contactless fare collection and digital currency accelerated. Consumers have more options than ever — and their behaviors will guide further innovation.

Financial firms can minimize the damage by understanding where key threats lie, educating employees and customers about phishing scams, and breaking down silos between compliance, fraud and security teams.

Randal Quarles, the Federal Reserve's vice chair for supervision, says the central bank was wise not to require banks to build capital cushions in the lead-up to the pandemic. But that decision rested on a misleading a narrative and could wind up threatening the economic recovery.

Any bank that engages in auto, mortgage or other retail lending should develop a comprehensive program to identify potential risks of noncompliance with consumer protection rules and take corrective actions before the Biden-era Consumer Financial Protection Bureau comes calling.

Just as small and midsize businesses had to adapt to survive the coronavirus emergency, lenders need to adopt new underwriting practices and technologies that modernize how they evaluate borrowers' creditworthiness.