Law and regulation

The central bank of Estonia, where Swedish banks dominate the lending market, urged consumers to steer clear of Bitcoin and similar virtual currencies, warning such software could prove to be little more than a "Ponzi scheme."

Stefan Ingves, chairman of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, called Friday for global regulators to complete their work on already agreed upon international banking reforms.

For some, 2013 may be remembered as the toughest regulatory year on record. New regulation will likely slow this year, but scrutiny is expected to rise.

Groups representing the U.S. financial-services industry urged Congress to resolve the debt limit debate because a default on the nation's obligations "should not be an option for policy makers to consider."

Fitch Ratings, Citigroup Global Markets, and issuers of municipal securities are warning that a proposal designed to ensure that financial institutions are equipped to handle severe financial stress could seriously hurt the municipal bond market.

One could imagine a postal bank as a feeder service that brings unbanked consumers into the mainstream financial system and then graduates them to private institutions.

The Senate is set to vote on a mammoth agricultural bill next Tuesday after two years of intense debate.

The Senate passed legislation Thursday afternoon to postpone flood insurance premium increases that have already begun to go into effect around the country.

The Selma, Ala. city council approve a six-month moratorium on payday and title loan businesses that will prevent new stores from obtaining licenses, according to city attorney Jimmy Nunn.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Wednesday initiated an administrative proceeding against PHH Corp. and its affiliates, alleging PHH harmed consumers through a mortgage insurance kickback scheme that started as early as 1995.

In a long-awaited move that's expected to reduce origination costs and streamline lenders' processes, the Federal Housing Administration will immediately start accepting electronic signatures on all mortgage insurance endorsement and servicing documents, and will accept e-signatures on promissory notes beginning Dec. 31.

Without naming names, the CFPB said in a report released Thursday that, based on its examinations, servicers made borrowers jump through hoops to qualify for loan modifications and were lax about maintaining accurate records.

Benjamin Lawsky, New York's top financial regulator, rarely sounds ambivalent. But when the topic is something as unprecedented and complex as Bitcoin, the big questions appear to give him pause.

Regulators are signing bilateral MOUs and advancing strategies meant to avoid ring-fencing, but some say more binding pacts should govern cross-border resolutions.

Lenders are loosening underwriting standards for nearly every type of credit except for some home equity lines, according to a report issued Thursday by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.

Merchants can't pass the blame for data breaches onto financial institutions because protecting consumers is a shared responsibility where both sides have to meet their responsibilities.

President Obama's announcement of a new retirement plan for low- to middle-income Americans in his State of the Union address drew scorn from advisors who say many big questions remain to be answered.

Richard Berner, director of the Office of Financial Research, on Wednesday tried to assuage fears by Republican senators that a recent report on the asset management industry could serve as the basis for a designation that such firms are systemically important.

House lawmakers passed a huge agriculture bill Wednesday morning, after political gridlock on key measures like food stamps stalled proceedings for more than two years.

Sunrise Bank in Cocoa Beach, Fla., has been freed from an enforcement order from the Federal Reserve Board.