Law and regulation

A most significant global institution, the G20, made up of the sovereign heads of the 23 largest global economies, late last year formally accepted the responsibility of creating a global identification system for financial market participants and the financial products they trade in.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has lifted a memorandum of understanding with the banking unit of First PacTrust Bancorp (BANC) of Irvine, Calif.

After accusations by Rep. Ron Paul, the Fed IG investigated — and discounted — claims that the Fed was involved in the 1972 Watergate scandal or Iraqi arms purchases in the 1980s.

Ailing Orrstown Bank in Shippensburg, Pa., has named a former chief lobbyist at the American Bankers Association to its board of directors.

WASHINGTON--For all the angst about heightened regulation in the banking sector, financial policymakers are increasingly turning their attention to a different industry: mobile handsets.

Supporters of the bipartisan measure say that it will help entrepreneurs, community banks, and other small businesses, but opponents fear that it opens the door to fraud.

Looking to bet on — errrr, hedge your exposure to — the 2012 presidential election?

The Treasury Department took one for the team last week when they gave up Dan Tangherlini, the assistant secretary for management and chief financial officer, who was tapped to pick up the pieces as acting head of the General Services Administration.

Brian Sack, head of the markets group for the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, is leaving his post, effective Sept. 14.

Any number of things about Ben Bernanke's job could potentially keep him up at night.

For all the angst about heightened regulation in the banking sector, financial policymakers are increasingly turning their attention to a different industry: cell phones.

InComm, following a similar move by American Express, plans to stop selling gift cards in retail stores in New Jersey.

American Banker readers share their views on the most pressing banking topics of the week. As excerpted from the Comments sections of AmericanBanker.com articles.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued a cease and desist order against Citibank Thursday for violations of the Bank Secrecy Act dating back to 2006.

While the Senate finally confirmed Martin Gruenberg to serve on the FDIC board, it's waiting until after the elections to confirm a chairman.

The Durbin amendment did not so much make the economics of low value payments unsustainable as reveal the fundamental truth that they were unsustainable to begin with.

The law takes steps to ensure that members of Congress do not use their office for personal gain. But as the president signed it into law, he said that it doesn't go far enough.

The National Fair Housing Alliance said Wednesday it plans to file complaints against several banks for consistent disparities in the way they maintain homes in minority neighborhoods compared to white areas.

A decision by the Federal Housing Finance Agency on whether it will wash away portions of underwater borrowers' mortgage is imminent, Ed DeMarco, the agency's acting director, said Wednesday.

Frustrated by a lack of political power and fed up with blindly donating to politicians who consistently vote against the industry's interests, a handful of leaders have formed the industry's first SuperPAC.