Law and regulation

Mortgage industry members are applauding Congressional efforts to raise the guarantee fees that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac charge lenders, saying the fee increases could help bring private investors back into the mortgage market.

The FDIC has served as the receiver on 90 banks so far this year, well below analysts' expectations. Still, observers say another 200 banks are at risk of failure over the next two years.

Agency had originally sought much more in case stemming from 2008 failure, but officials say deal still provides creditor relief.

The silence is almost deafening.

Washington Mutual Inc. unveiled a new proposed settlement with shareholders who have held up confirmation of its Chapter 11 plan and a $7 billion payday for creditors.

Bond insurer MBIA Inc. will pay Morgan Stanley $1.1 billion to settle a two-year-old legal clash over guarantees tied to commercial and residential real estate, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Members of the Senate Banking Committee voiced concerns Tuesday over a series of reports from a government watchdog that identified flaws in the FHFA's oversight of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

With the number of bank failures continuing to fall, the agency plans to cut its budget by 15% in 2012.

The nomination of Hoenig, the former Kansas City Fed president, now moves to the full Senate for consideration.

Three former executives of Washington Mutual Inc. have agreed to settle a civil lawsuit stemming from the biggest-ever bank failure for less than 10% of the $900 million that was sought by federal regulators, according to people familiar with the situation.

The Missouri Supreme Court has declined to hear the Missouri Attorney General's appeal of a decision to uphold a trial court’s dismissal of the attorney general’s lawsuit against Portfolio Recovery Associates.

The Texas Attorney General's office on Monday sued Houston-based payday loan collection agency First Integral Recovery, alleging employees claimed the company was tied with law enforcement agencies and the Internal Revenue Service.

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney urged Newt Gingrich to return more than $1.6 million he made consulting for Freddie Mac, one of the two government-sponsored enterprises caught up in the housing meltdown.

Litigation fears may impede industry support for shorter credit card term agreements, even though most issuers agree reducing the amount of text is a nice idea.

The Senate Banking Committee has scheduled a vote Tuesday on Thomas Hoenig to become vice chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has named Morris Morgan the large bank deputy comptroller, the agency announced in a press release Monday.

Expect more debt exchanges and cash tender offers from banks in the coming months. The strategy is rational and the alternatives for generating equity are limited at best.

With lessons of crisis still fresh, the agency has launched a corporate risk-management office to prepare for future dangers.

The heir to the Hyatt hotel fortune has ties to the industry, but the family's last banking venture didn't end so well.

Lots of ink has been spilled over financial events in Europe, but the essential issues are much more straightforward than they've been portrayed.