As credit cards defaults and delinquencies continue to wane, banks and retailers are growing increasingly more confident in extending credit to consumers.

Lenders’ choices today are stark: Make Qualified Mortgage loans and risk being sued under the disparate-impact doctrine; make non-QM loans and risk being sued under the ability-to-pay-doctrine; or sell their loans to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Heartland Financial (HTLF) in Dubuque, Iowa, has purchased a bank of River Valley Bancorp in Davenport, Iowa.

The U.S. lags far behind much of the world in transferring funds rapidly from the bank account of one party to another's. Times vary by bank, but recipients commonly wait days to receive payments. Here's a look at five countries where consumers and businesses enjoy close to real-time to transferred funds.

Ed Grebow abruptly left the New York bank after just two years. The union-controlled bank, backed by private equity and stabilized by its departed CEO, wants a leader who can generate a return on investment.

The final six of 10 defendants named in an alleged “Rachel from Cardholder Services” scam have agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that they misled consumers with bogus claims that they would lower their credit card interest rates.

Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB) in Cincinnati has agreed to pay $25 million to Freddie Mac to resolve mortgage repurchase claims.

The auto loan delinquency rate (the ratio of borrowers 60 days or more delinquent on their auto loans) increased to 1.04% in the third quarter ended Sept. 30, up on both a quarterly and yearly basis (from 0.87% in the previous quarter and 1.00% in Q3 2012).

DCB Financial (DCBF) in Lewis Center, Ohio, has been freed from a Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland order.

Banc of California (BANC) in Irvine has filed documents that would allow it to offer up to $1 billion of securities.

Electronic payments provider ACI Worldwide inked a nine-year extension to service 24,000 ATMs across the U.K. for VocaLink, the country’s payment infrastructure provider.

WSFS Financial (WSFS) in Wilmington, Del., has agreed to buy First Wyoming Financial in Wyoming, Del.

Cardinal Bankshares (CDBK) in Floyd, Va., reported a steep quarterly loss as it continues to work through legacy credit losses.

First Community Financial Partners (FCMP) in Joliet, Ill., is now allowed to manage its capital without regulatory consent.

Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC) Vice President Kurt Lofrano should be added as a defendant to a lawsuit over allegedly fraudulent mortgages, the U.S. said in a filing in Manhattan federal court.

BBVA Compass in Birmingham, Ala., has taken the first step to becoming a registrant with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A recap of the informed opinions (and the discussions they generated) this week.

Barely a handful of lenders are refinancing student loans, despite a prolonged period of low interest rates and the surging debt burden for college graduates.

Many of the payments industry's longtime veterans and new entrants started their careers in other industries or founded their companies with a different purpose in mind. Here are some highlights from the many diverse career paths in the payments world.

The Federal Reserve Board has approved a deal for prepaid card issuer Green Dot to buy GE Capital's Walmart-branded prepaid debit card business, according to a statement the Fed posted online Nov. 22.