WASHINGTON - (04/20/05) -- Top credit union lobbyists will beat hand Thursday afternoon when President Bush is expected to signthe bankruptcy reform bill into law. "I think over the long termthis bill is going to be recognized by consumers as a good thingfor them as it helps ensure that everybody pays their debts,"CUNA's chief lobbyist John McKechnie, who has worked for the bill'spassage for almost a decade, told The Credit Union Journal.McKechnie and CUNA President Dan Mica, as well as NAFCU PresidentFred Becker, are expected to be nearby at the Old Executive Officebuilding, adjacent to the White House, when President Bush signsthe bill into law. The bill will become law six months after thePresident signs it. It will create a means-based bankruptcy system,preventing those debtors with some financial means from filing aChapter 7 to erase all debts, relegating them instead to a Chapter13 financial reorganization. It will also require all bankruptcyfilers to undergo financial counseling and retain credit union'sability to enter into reaffirmation, or voluntary repayment,agreements with bankruptcy filers.
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Synovus Financial demonstrated at an industry conference how it is using Microsoft's Copilot to help its staff address customers' concerns.
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The U.S. arm of Spanish banking giant Santander has hired Swati Bhatia to oversee retail banking and its digital transformation efforts. Bhatia joins at "an inflection point" for the company, which aims to be "a digital bank with branches," CEO Tim Wennes said.
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Mariya Rosberg is named Americas head of banking and financial services at Marsh McLennan's Oliver Wyman unit; startup ZayZoon raised $15 million in a new funding round; and more in the weekly banking news roundup.
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Last year, the Raleigh, N.C.-based Integrated called off a deal to sell itself to MVB Financial after bank stocks took a hit in the aftermath of the regional bank failures. Capital hopes to expand its government-guaranteed lending with the transaction.
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Once a prominent figure spurring financial institutions to engage in cryptocurrency, Bankman-Fried's downslide began with the collapse of the digital asset exchange FTX in late 2022 and hit rock bottom with his sentencing to 25 years in prison.
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But the 30-year fixed rate mortgage is still near 7%, and that remains the overhang on the housing market, Freddie Mac said.
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