Law and regulation

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.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's experiments with selling credit risk to investors are a critical element of new plan to merge the two entities and move them out of conservatorship, but what form so-called credit risk transfers take could make a big difference.

Federal rules for technology-based firms providing the fast-moving sector certainty and consistency would be a benefit, even if rules are suboptimal.

Banks should prepare for renewed scrutiny of their anti-money-laundering efforts in the wake of the headline-grabbing leak of the Panama Papers.

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.

In a panel featuring the four living chairs of the Federal Reserve Board, Janet Yellen said that she does not share Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari's view that the biggest banks need to be broken up – but respects his opinion and the role of regional banks in the Fed system.

Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and nine other Democrats are attempting to block a go-around they say payday lenders use to avoid complying with state laws.

Speaking before the Senate Banking Committee, CFPB Director Richard Cordray said fintech companies should be held to the same standards as depository institutions. At the hearing, Cordray fielded questions on payday loans, indirect auto lending and regulation by enforcement rather than rulemaking.

Sens. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, and Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., sent a letter to the Treasury Department on Thursday urging an investigation into whether any U.S. or U.S.-linked entities are associated with the Panama-based law firm Mossack Fonseca & Co. and its schemes to help wealthy individuals and businesses evade taxes and launder money.

LAS VEGAS – Office of the Comptroller of the Currency chief Thomas Curry said Thursday that banks have reached a do-or-die moment and it is up to them to keep up and outinnovate nonbank rivals.

The housing market has been improving but mortgage credit remains "stubbornly" tight on loans bought by the government-sponsored enterprises, according to a chief housing adviser at the White House.

Richard Hunt, the president and CEO of the Consumer Bankers Association, weighs in on recent moves by regulators to scrutinize fintech firms and whether the agencies are going far enough.