BankThink

Amy Friend, the former chief counsel of the Senate Banking Committee is expected to rejoin the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. Friend, who helped draft the Dodd-Frank Act, will be the OCC's top lawyer.

Expertise alone is insufficient without experience, and its byproduct: a "gut" feeling that enables a lender to separate the good credit applicant from the bad, the legitimate from the "con".

For decades, credit unions have treated insurance products as the redheaded stepchild to their core business. Pressure on net-interest margins, the need for fee income that comes from helping members and not dunning them, the focus on member retention by increasing products per household, and the major jump in online banking utilization rates-all of these factors are causing a few innovative credit unions CEOs nationally to rethink insurance.

It seems that a Mr. Sam Clemons, who was something of a steamboat pilot during the latter half of the 19th century, may have been onto something when he observed that there are three kinds of lies: Lies, Damn Lies and Statistics.

Arp Trivedi, manager of administration with Motion Federal Credit Union, explains how Smartsheet and Google Apps have given a boost to his credit union.

Receiving Wide Coverage ...Debt Ceiling Update: A Journal article this morning looks at Treasury's options for paying the nation's bills should Congress refuse to raise the $16.4 trillion federal borrowing limit. These option include "selling assets such as gold or mortgage-backed securities ... cutting all spending by 40% ... delaying trillions of dollars of payments to employees, Social Security recipients, contractors and others" or paying the government's bills only as tax revenue become available. The last proposal is considered "most viable," according to the paper, but the general takeaway seems to be none of these contingency options are good. This is problematic since another showdown over the debt ceiling is looking increasing likely. Recent estimates from the Bipartisan Policy Center, a Washington think tank, say Treasury will run short of cash between Feb. 15 and March 1 unless the debt ceiling is raised.

History shows banks can't compete with agents selling consumers insurance. But credit protection products have been highly profitable for the banks, and can remain so – provided the products are reformed.

By downgrading the CRA rating of JPMorgan Chase, the OCC demonstrated it is capable of holding a major bank accountable for a deplorable record of serving the credit needs of low- and moderate-income communities.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released its final rule on Thursday, establishing new standards for all mortgages.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released its final rules restricting fees and lump-sum payments for certain high-cost loans on Thursday.