BankThink

As the world accelerates toward faster and contactless payments, the U.S. has been reinforcing checks, avoiding global payments standards and pursuing closed-loop innovations that further isolate it.

With the CFTC on hiatus during the government shutdown, the industry should take the opportunity to consider the potential damage for a market that has become integral to banking.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has decided to pull its enforcement attorneys from exams with financial companies after banks declared their opposition of their presence.

Receiving Wide Coverage ...A Deal to Be Had? Finally? All eyes remain fixed on Washington this week, as patience wears thin and lawmakers try to come up with an agreement to end the government shutdown and avert the looming debt ceiling. Democrats and Republicans have so far refused to negotiate with one another, but signs of a deal may be starting to emerge. (The game of chicken can only go on so long before the cars actually crash.) GOP Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin shared a plan with fellow conservatives on Wednesday that would raise the debt ceiling temporarily, buying lawmakers more time to come up with a comprehensive deficit-reduction agreement. House Republicans are set to meet with President Obama on Thursday for the first time since the shutdown began on Oct. 1. Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Financial Times

Janet Yellen shouldn't have needed anyone's help to be nominated to lead the Fed. Her tortuous path underscores the importance of rallying around qualified women candidates for industry leadership positions.

The distinguished economist will have to make monetary policy a priority during her tenure as Fed chair. But Yellen won’t forget about her financial regulatory role and is likely to support stricter capital requirements along with enhanced nonbank supervision.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development's recent proposal regarding the definition of "qualified mortgages" differs from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's QM rule. These key differences are causing lenders to be overwhelmed with how to implement the agency's plan.

Hopefully, examiners will respect good-faith efforts by banks and third-party processors to verify that a merchant’s business is legal – rather than expect financial institutions to guarantee how courts will decide.

Receiving Wide Coverage ...Yellen Picked as Next Fed Leader: President Obama will formally nominate Janet Yellen today to be the chairwoman of the Federal Reserve, the White House announced Tuesday. Yellen, current vice-chair of the Fed, was one of the front runners to replace Ben Bernanke, the current chairman, who is set to step down in January. She became the top candidate after Lawrence Summers withdrew his name from consideration last month. Although Yellen's nomination is expected to garner bipartisan support, she could encounter pushback from some powerful Republicans. Senator Bob Corker, R-Tenn., a senior member of the Senate banking committee, said in widely published statement that he voted against Yellen's 2010 vice-chairman nomination because of her "dovish views on monetary policy," he added,

According to an essay by Raymond Natter, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Dodd-Frank Act may cut off payments to conflict-torn areas.