Law and regulation

After months of wrangling, the Federal Reserve Board’s decision to cap debit card interchange rates may have seemed like the final word. The reality, however, appears more complex.

Bank of America Corp. has agreed to pay $5 million to settle a dispute with San Francisco’s city attorney over the card issuer’s former use of the National Arbitration Forum to settle cardholder disputes, the two sides announced Aug. 23.

A federal judge says the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. can't dodge a $10 billion lawsuit over the toxic remnants of Washington Mutual Bank.

CoBiz Financial Inc. said Monday that it was initially approved for as much as $57.4 million from the Small Business Lending Fund program — the second highest amount approved to date.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s "Quarterly Banking Profile" showed many positive signs for the industry. Net income was nearly 38% higher than a year earlier, registering the eighth straight quarter with year-over-year earnings growth. Total loans rose 0.9% in the quarter to $7.3 trillion, the first such increase in three years.

Miami-based Ocean Bank faces a nearly $11 million fine to settle charges it turned a blind eye to drug traffickers allegedly using the bank to launder money.

Central bank proposes two-year phase-in period for thrift holding companies to start new reporting requirements.

When the final chapter on this housing crisis is written, I hope that I am still around to see those who were responsible for its cause and the feeble attempts to fix it held responsible.

The agency's Quarterly Banking Profile will report bank and thrift earnings for the second quarter. In May, the agency said institutions had earned $29 billion in the first quarter, and net income had grown on a year-over-year basis for seven straight quarters.

Most 'ex parte' communications with the regulator will be part of the public domain.

Stein and Clarida have let their opinions be known on issues ranging from capital rules to Fed efforts to boost the economy.

Years may pass before some merchants realize any savings from the debit card interchange-fee cap mandated by the Durbin amendment to the Dodd-Frank Act.

Mutual holding companies now must explain why they want to waive dividends from their thrifts. Observers fear the rule could repel prospective investors.

A small mutual thrift in Maryland has won approval from state and federal regulators to convert to a publicly traded company.

Efforts to reach a settlement that would end the long-running probe of foreclosure practices are snagged over whether banks will get broad legal immunity from state officials for mortgage-related claims.

Since U.S. legislators and regulators failed to learn how banks' shared delusions generate systemic risk, it's not surprising that European banking regulators also missed the point.

Regulators closed banks in Florida, Georgia and Illinois Friday, all in places were many banks have already met their demise. On Thursday, a bank failed in Pennsylvania, one of just a handful to fail in that state in the last few years.

Amid renewed fears that the euro-zone crisis could put fresh pressure on short-term funding, an unidentified bank made use of the Federal Reserve's swap facility via the Swiss National Bank, borrowing $200 million earlier this month.

A liberal blog charges that House Oversight Committee Chairman Darrell Issa hired a former Goldman Sachs executive helped thwart regulations that would affect the investment bank's bottom line.

Davis Polk announced Thursday that antitrust expert and Georgetown law professor Howard Shelanski is joining the firm's Washington office.