Opinion News from American Banker

The ongoing turmoil in the Middle East has highlighted the complexities of successful anti-money-laundering compliance in a conflict zone. U.S. banks need to step up their game in order to stay safe.

Rocket Mortgage's acquisition of Redfin has been mischaracterized as harming competition in the mortgage lending space. The truth is that it could be a major boon for mortgage borrowers.

Federal grants funding nonprofits that help people build strong credit are being slashed. The result will be more foreclosures, evictions, bankruptcies and out-of-business signs at small businesses across the country.

Now more than ever, businesses globally have become increasingly susceptible to financial fraud.

Efforts to shoehorn the Credit Card Competition Act into pieces of popular legislation need to be defeated. The proposed law would harm the small businesses and consumers it purports to help.

Congress is considering major changes to federally supported student loan programs. If lawmakers aren't careful, they could close off a vital pipeline of talent that feeds vital public systems.

Bank regulators should be in the business of proactively encouraging innovation in financial services, rather than taking a reactive stance that focuses on punishment.

The insights of frontline employees can be invaluable tools for improving a bank's operations. It's up to executives to get out of the office and listen to what they have to teach them.

For too long, America has taken a back seat to other nations when it comes to stablecoin regulation. Members of the House have the opportunity to rectify that problem by sending the GENIUS Act to President Trump's desk.

Supposedly written to expand consumers' "freedom," the rule implementing open banking laws is actually central planning in disguise. It can't be allowed to supplant better, market-driven solutions.

Many young people begin their journey into adulthood without a solid grounding in the basics of personal finance. Banks and other financial institutions are in a unique position to provide that knowledge.

The president should unwind the federal government's stake in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and direct the proceeds to a housing remainder trust designed to close critical gaps in real estate lending.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's decision to remove reputational risk from banks supervision plans means that one of examiners' most effective tools has been stripped away.

The president's rush to weaponize trade policy is going to accelerate efforts by other countries to decrease their reliance on U.S.-based payments processors. That's not in the country's interest.

The removal of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau as a viable regulator has thrown the doors open to the kind of unscrupulous behavior that triggered the last major financial crisis.

Automated systems respond poorly when confronted with edge cases and unfamiliar circumstances. But those are exactly the moments when a customer's trust in a bank is either established, or lost forever.

Wise bankers will recognize that as the Trump administration dismantles much of the supervisory structure built up over past decades, regulatory risks are being supplanted by other dangers.

It is past time to rethink how we treat banking organizations in trouble. It is time we work to support institutions in trouble wherever possible, rather than simply punishing the institutions and the public.

Blockchain-based tokenized financial products are rapidly advancing into asset classes like private credit and commercial real estate. American banks must lead, before global competitors set the terms.

Reports that the White House is considering naming Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent as the next chair of the Federal Reserve have raised eyebrows and speculation in Washington — especially in an administration with a penchant for assigning cabinet secretaries multiple jobs.