Law and regulation

Banks should assess a customer's full financial picture before deciding to sell a debt to a third-party collection agent.

Four years after the first states legalized marijuana, most bankers still want nothing to do with it.

In June, SourceMedia Research — an affiliate of American Banker — conducted a survey of 52 chief operating officers and other operations executives on a range of topics, including COOs' top priorities and what they think will be their future role. The data suggests COOs are concerned with regulatory trends and security threats and view themselves as change agents. Many aspire to one day become a CEO. Here are some data snapshots.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's proposal Friday updating its mortgage disclosure rule did not give lenders what they wanted: an ability to correct errors after a loan has closed and a release from liability for technical violations. But the 293-page proposal did provide revisions that will help in compliance and the closing of more loans.

The CFPB updated its "Know Before You Owe" mortgage disclosure rule to provide more clarity to lenders. It has proposed additional tolerance provisions, clarified a partial exemption for housing finance agencies, extended the rule's coverage to all cooperative units, and provided more clarity about privacy and the sharing of information.

The Glass-Steagall Act of 1933 was an unexpected and prominent part of the Democratic and Republican conventions this year, as both parties added a call to reinstate the law as part of their party platforms. But that will be easier said than done, considering that lawmakers from both sides of the aisle have shown little interest in the idea. Following is a look at how a Depression-era law found its way to Cleveland and Philadelphia.

WASHINGTON — Despite efforts by regulators and banks to improve underwriting of commercial leveraged loans, the number of troubled large syndicated credits jumped again this year, according to a report released Friday by federal regulators.

Regulators' recent warnings on emerging risks with commercial real estate indicate banks have reverted to CRE practices that got them in hot water once before.

American Banker readers share their views on the most pressing banking topics of the week. Comments are excerpted from reader response sections of AmericanBanker.com articles and our social media platforms.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's debt collection plan is likely to put pressure on banks and first-party creditors to provide better documentation on consumer debts that get transferred to debt buyers and collectors. While the proposal does not cover banks and first-party creditors, some experts said banks will be on the hook for providing better information.

It's part of the Democratic platform, but lawmakers at the convention here are skeptical of embracing a plan to restore the Glass-Steagall Act, unsure what it would look like.

The week Hillary Clinton made history for women by winning her party's presidential nomination, and newspapers everywhere featured her husband Bill in their front-page photos. (Go figure.) Fed governor Lael Brainard is being touted as a possible Clinton cabinet member. Sallie Krawcheck and Jenny Knott talk Wall Street then and now, and so does Barbara Byrne, whose stories you may find mirrored in the upcoming movie "Equity." U.S. Bancorp has family therapists for the ultra-rich. Plus, Claire Calmejane, Mary Callahan Erdoes and Beth Mooney.

Wells Fargo is facing a U.S. investigation into whether it improperly repossessed cars owned by members of the military, according to two people with knowledge of the probe.

Companies that rely on the U.K. as an easy portal to Europe or a bridge between Europe and North America stand to face serious challenges and are suddenly thrust into a big set of unknowns.

The Beltway debate between the retail and financial sectors over the electronic payment system has flared up again. While retailers are lobbying Congress to extend government price controls to credit card interchange rates, separate bills would repeal Durbin Amendment ceilings on debit card interchange and strengthen merchant security standards.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released a plan Thursday to overhaul the debt collection industry that would limit collection attempts to six per week and require confirmation of a debt before contacting consumers. The plan, however, is not yet directed at banks and credit card companies.

The cybersecurity climate is already an all-hands-on-deck situation, so one more threat – even one prompted by one of America's loudest voices – may not matter.

President Obama called for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to be eliminated, but Democratic policymakers attending the convention in Philadelphia appear resigned to the fact that Congress is unable to act on housing finance reform.

Nearly all publicly traded equities and a majority of bonds are owned not by the investors themselves but by a little-known entity called Cede & Co. This attenuation of property rights creates systemic risk, but an effort is underway to transform the system.

As if high default costs haven't been challenging enough for mortgage servicers, a growing number of seriously delinquent loans are Federal Housing Administration products, which require significant upfront investment to resolve.