Law and regulation

Sen. Richard Shelby's bill isn't public yet, but sources indicate it could simplify capital standards for small banks, raise the $50 billion systemic threshold, alter the "qualified mortgage" rule and make some changes to the structure of the Federal Reserve Board.

In responding to a fan Monday on Twitter, Rowling was asked the full name of the character "Moaning Myrtle," a ghost that haunts Hogwarts, where Harry Potter goes to school. Rowling's reply raised a few eyebrows.

Most banks appear to be coping well with the CFPB's ability-to-repay rule for mortgages, but the burden is falling harder on community banks. A new proposal that would allow more small lenders to grant home loans to borrowers with high levels of debt could help.

Investor-owned ratings agencies would send a message to mutual fund shareholders, retirement plan participants and other investors that steps have been taken to avoid repeating the inaccurate ratings that contributed so heavily to the financial crisis.

The Illinois Department of Financial & Professional Regulation closed the $90 million-asset Edgebrook Bank in Chicago on Friday.

Senate Banking Committee Chairman Richard Shelby announced Friday he was pushing back a planned vote on regulatory relief until May 21. The move came just after panel Democrats said they would oppose the bill because they had not yet seen it.

WASHINGTON — Jeremiah Norton, a board member on the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., will be stepping down on June 5, the agency said late Friday.

The administration's signature loan modification and refinancing programs will be extended for one year to help borrowers "who continue to face challenges," the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency said.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Department of Justice are taking a renewed interest in redlining, the practice of lenders charging more for products or excluding altogether minorities within certain geographic areas — and their findings may be surprising.

WASHINGTON — All 10 Democrats on the Senate Banking Committee sent a joint letter Friday that said they plan to oppose a regulatory relief bill scheduled for a panel vote next week since Republicans have not yet provided legislative language to all members.

A recap of the informed opinions (and the discussions they generated) on BankThink this week, including how convenience may help banks beat out Silicon Valley and whether community banks can reduce their regulatory burden on their own.

Bitcoin firms are eager to partner with banks, but they first need to prove that they have left their unruly days behind — and perhaps submit to government oversight.

Fannie and Freddie will have more room to finance affordable rental housing, but it is unclear if it's enough to prevent possible disruptions later this year.

WASHINGTON — Sens. David Vitter, R-La., and Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., introduced legislation Thursday that would make several changes to the Federal Reserve Board and its powers.

WASHINGTON — Two reports issued Thursday by the Treasury Department's Office of Financial Research suggest regulators have not considered all the potential risks from central swaps clearing and more steps may be needed to mitigate those risks.

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 from our social media platforms.

A statement by a foreign regulator that it might penalize banks that drop businesses due to heightened supervisory risk has spooked U.S. institutions who worry domestic agencies could follow suit.

Housing affects too many Americans to simply cast out government involvement, especially where the government-sponsored entities and Ginnie Mae are concerned.

itBit, the startup Bitcoin exchange whose backers include former FDIC chairman Sheila Bair, has become the first digital currency firm to receive a trust charter under New York banking law.

Fannie Mae, the mortgage-finance company operating under U.S. conservatorship, will pay the Treasury Department $1.8 billion after reporting net income of $1.9 billion for the first quarter.