Law and regulation

The U.K. Government is ramping up its efforts in supporting the country’s fintech industry, announcing Monday initiatives to create a fintech strategy unit and information hub for startups.

Regulators have yet to provide feedback on last year's living-will resolution plans, but for foreign banks with significant operations in the U.S., those assessments are too late. Such institutions are required to put in place an entirely different business model by July of this year.

A former Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. employee took off with data on some 44,000 customers of closed banks when she left the agency in late February, according to an agency memo uncovered by The Washington Post.

The latest version of a new accounting standard for calculating loan-loss reserves would ease the burden on small banks, ICBA officials say. However, the ABA says it still fails to eliminate the biggest problem — asking lenders to predict the future.

A former aide to Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen has broken ranks with his former employer and issued a blueprint for a sweeping reform of the U.S. central bank, including regular government audits and shorter term limits for policy makers.

Congress should consider giving direct authority over nonbank mortgage servicers to the Federal Housing Finance Agency, according to a report released Monday by the Government Accountability Office. The report said there should be "parity" among financial regulators in the oversight of regulated entities and third parties they do business with.

Goldman Sachs will pay $5.1 billion to settle a U.S. probe into its handling of mortgage-backed securities involving allegations that loans weren't properly vetted before being sold to investors as high-quality bonds.

Several years after regulators began developing the "net stable funding ratio," there is good reason to ask if its utility has been eclipsed by other liquidity-related rules.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's agenda is so packed it's no wonder that when Director Richard Cordray testifies on Capitol Hill, he has to tackle a huge array of subjects. Following are areas where the agency has proposals or final rules outstanding:

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit will hear oral arguments Tuesday about the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's structure, in a case that has national implications. Even though a ruling isn't expected until the end of the year, legal experts say there are four major legal issues involved.