Law and regulation

A two-year-old consent order between the banking unit of Macatawa Bank Corp. and regulators has been terminated after the Holland, Mich., company raised additional capital and reversed a string of money-losing quarters.

United Western Bancorp Inc. in Denver has filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy in a move that would allow the company more time to pursue its lawsuit against federal regulators for seizing its thrift in January 2011.

The reviews, mandated by regulators, could turn up errors made by the mortgage servicers' auditors. What if the firm doing a foreclosure review previously audited the same client?

At a hearing last week, Rep. Ron Paul asked Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke whether he did his own grocery shopping — and then brought a prop with him to suggest why silver should be part of our monetary system.

WASHINGTON — The failure of Global Commerce Bank in Doraville, Ga., late Friday was estimated to cost the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. nearly $18 million.

Ballard Spahr has picked up former Bank of America counsel Stanley Mabbitt for its consumer financial services and mortgage banking groups.

Despite his harsh rhetoric directed at the financial industry, President Obama still raked in millions last week at four separate fundraising events for his supporters on Wall Street.

In last week's New Yorker, humorist Calvin Trillin turned his satirical gaze on Newt Gingrich and the GOP presidential candidate's claim that Freddie Mac hired him as a historian, and not as a lobbyist or influence peddler.

Yes, Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke knows the price of milk, bread and eggs.

While community banks call on Congress to give the Transaction Account Guarantee more time, an array of - albeit costlier - alternatives for retaining customers and liquidity does exist.

The Treasury Department said Friday it has agreed to pay $171 million it had withheld from Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase after the lenders fixed problems in how they handle loan assistance programs.

PennyMac founder and former Countrywide president Stanford L. Kurland has taken his share of criticism for helping to start the financial crisis. Now he is singing the praises of the government's latest attempt to fix it.

The Federal Reserve Board on Friday issued guidance to community bank examiners on what they should consider when upgrading an institution's supervisory rating.

The Federal Reserve Board said Friday it will give the industry more time to weigh in on a batch of rules that will impact how much capital banks must hold

After more than 25 years as national bank, Equity Bank in Andover, Kan., is switching to a state charter.

Dorsey Thornton & Associates LLC, a Georgia-based collection company, entered into a $15.5 million settlement agreement with the state's Governor's Office of Consumer Protection to resolve allegations that the agency harassed and deceived thousands of consumers.

One has to admire the tenacity of the credit union lobby. Once again, a handful of very large credit unions are putting pressure on Congressional officials to pass legislation that will increase credit unions' business lending authority from 12.5 percent of their total assets to 27.5 percent. The commercial banking industry has fought off similar attempts for such expansion in previous Congressional sessions and we are working hard to do so once again.

A decision by a Georgia judge this week raised new obstacles in the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s claims against former managers of the failed Integrity Bank.

Citizens Republic Bancorp Inc. in Flint. Mich., would need to increase its size by roughly 25% to offset any costs associated with crossing the $10 billion-asset threshold, according to Chief Executive Cathleen Nash.

Sen. Richard Durbin on Thursday blasted Bank of America following a report that the firm is weighing new fees for certain checking account holders.