Law and regulation

A final judgment against Bank of America in a mortgage-bond lawsuit by the Securities and Exchange Commission was signed by a federal judge, helping clear the way for the lender to complete a $16.7 billion global settlement of claims it misled investors about risk.

Recent speeches by Benjamin Lawsky and other regulators suggest that government officials are gearing up to issue new cybersecurity rules. Banks' relationships with third-party vendors are one likely area of focus.

The CFPB's proposed requirements threaten to trap next-generation digital wallets and cryptocurrency innovations in a consumer protection regime narrowly tailored to the unique characteristics of reloadable prepaid cards.

Although regulators say the bank's resolution plan still has "specific shortcomings," Wells Fargo appears closer than other banks in fulfilling the Dodd-Frank requirement.

Two community banks recently were permitted to transfer cash to their holding companies. It could be a sign that regulators are changing their attitudes toward such payments now that banks have healthier capital levels.

Since the crisis, banks have relied on lower loan-loss provisions to make a profit. But banks actually made money in the third quarter. Here's how.

The Federal Reserve said it plans to oversee General Electric Co.'s finance unit in a similar manner to the way it supervises large bank-holding companies.

FDIC third quarter report shows pop in loan buybacks and indemnifications.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has pushed back three key rulemakings – including the highly anticipated proposal on payday lending – until next year.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has pushed back three key rulemakings - including the highly anticipated proposal on payday lending - until next year.

Regulators are urging senior bank management to spearhead the effort to improve cyber risk management. Executives would be well advised to act before fines and other enforcement actions are handed down.

Banks and thrifts earned $38.7 billion in the third quarter, a 7.3% increase from a year earlier but slightly down from the $40.1 billion earned in the second quarter, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. said Tuesday.

The Loan Syndications and Trading Association is asking a D.C. Court of Appeals to throw out the final risk retention rules that banking and securities regulators approved last month, arguing it was written in an "arbitrary, capricious" way. That may make other industry groups unhappy.

With new bank chartering at a standstill, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. has issued new guidance on de novo capital requirements and other issues in part to "demystify the application process."

Before the CFPB imposes new rules on overdraft fees, it should consider whether restricting consumer access to this feature could drive people to more expensive alternatives like payday loans.

Banks and regulators aren't the best judges of what constitutes a clear and transparent disclosure form. The CFPB could fix the problem by holding a contest that asks professional designers to create models that convey important information in a way that consumers can understand.

Electronic commerce has made our world closer than ever.

New York Fed President William Dudley insisted Friday that regulators are more like "fire wardens" than "cops on the beat." It's an analogy that says far more than Dudley likely intended — and a comment he will likely regret. Here's why.

Senate Democrats hammered William Dudley, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, at a highly anticipated hearing on Friday, demonstrating the growing pressure the central bank is under to take harsher actions against banks and restrict examiners from defecting to institutions after leaving service.

Federal Reserve Board Gov. Daniel Tarullo updated a Senate subcommittee on a pending proposal dealing with banks' commodity dealings that one lawmaker called "long overdue."