Law and regulation

Recent comments by Russell Golden, chairman of the Financial Accounting Standards Board, raise questions about the board's plans to change bank accounting standards.

A new digital currency backed by gold is billing itself as a more compliant, liquid and ultimately reliable store of value than decentralized systems such as bitcoin.

Regulators and institutions appear far apart when it comes to so-called "de-risking," in which banks drop businesses for fear of enhanced regulatory scrutiny, even while policymakers are stepping up their scrutiny of terrorist financing prevention in the wake of recent attacks.

An overhaul of money-market funds, years in the making and fiercely opposed by the financial sector, will take effect in 2016. There's little debating that the new rules will be bad for some banks, but they could also create new opportunities for small and mid-sized banks in need of cheaper funding.

A federal judge is urging the parties of a closely watched pot-banking case to settle their dispute.

"The allegations of discrimination and predatory practices raised by the reporting are obviously very concerning to the bureau," a CFPB official told American Banker.

The Bancorp in Wilmington, Del., has agreed to pay a $3 million civil money penalty to address issues tied to electronic fund transfer practices.

Bank fraud can follow you to the grave. That's what prosecutors in Brooklyn, New York, said in the case of two men who worked as personal bankers at JPMorgan Chase & Co. and are accused of stealing $400,000 from inactive bank accounts.

Officials who assess how well banks lend and invest in their communities seem out of sync with the experiences of Main Street.

The Federal Reserve is looking for advice and insight into how it might improve its annual stress testing regime, but banks and industry observers say the central bank is unlikely to touch the aspect of the tests that bothers them most: its secrecy.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is charging the law firm Frederick J. Hanna & Associates $3.1 million over allegations that it illegally filed debt collection lawsuits against consumers.

A trip to London reveals how far ahead British and other European regulators are in streamlining the licensing process for payments providers and other fintech firms.

Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., has a limited window to move his regulatory reform legislation next year, after failing to secure passage for the bill as part of the budget fight.

One of the more unusual financial crime stories of the year concerned two men who were charged with operating an illegal Bitcoin exchange through a now-shuttered New Jersey credit union.

Financial institutions considering whether to bank marijuana-related businesses often receive inaccurate information about the emerging industry. Here are five common myths.

A year ago we asked BankThink contributors to make bold predictions about how the financial industry would evolve in 2015. Here's a look back at their forecasts and the actual outcomes.

The Federal Reserve extended the public comment period for KeyCorp's proposed $4.1 billion takeover of First Niagara Financial Group until Jan. 31, after a lawmaker said communities affected by the deal need to weigh in.

With its proposal to force big banks to deliver "recovery plans," the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is filling a gap in the current regulatory regime — and making a power play at the same time.

Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders called for several major changes at the Federal Reserve on Wednesday, warning that the central bank “has been hijacked by the very bankers it regulates.”

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are telling lenders that they are willing to retain loans with defects if they believe the defects are minor and can be fixed. But Freddie is one-upping Fannie by offering to retain such loans without charging lenders a fee.