Law and regulation

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency took action against bank technology providers BSERV and Fundtech in December, ordering the companies to ensure that their services effectively monitor risk.

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The Buffalo, N.Y., company still has some goodwill from analysts based on its reputation as a skilled bank buyer, but it has become the poster child for the risks associated with M&A in a tough regulatory environment.

Judges for an appeals court appeared sympathetic Friday to the Federal Reserve Board's defense of its rule capping interchange fees on debit cards, fueling hopes by bankers that the agency will beat back a legal challenge.

A recap of the informed opinions (and the discussions they generated) this week on BankThink.

Webster Financial (WBS) in Waterbury, Conn., reported lower fourth-quarter profit after taking a big charge tied to the Volcker Rule.

In his last speech as Federal Reserve Board chairman, Ben Bernanke said the central bank's steps to support wholesale funding markets were "as important, if not more important" than other actions taken during the crisis.

Reps. John Delaney, D-Md., John Carney, D-Del., and Jim Himes, D-Conn., unveiled the outlines of a new housing finance reform plan on Thursday that would provide an explicit government backstop for the market, while requiring increased private sector participation.

Regulators' attempt to carve out an exemption for small banks from a key part of the Volcker Rule satisfied most institutions that feared getting swallowed up in the Dodd-Frank Act provision, but left others still vulnerable to the regulation and facing significant losses.

It is easy to see the stress tests as an annoying distraction to banks. However, if banks embrace them, these tests can be a useful arrow in the risk management quiver.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency proposed official guidelines describing its "heightened expectations" for how large banks and thrifts control risk.

The Federal Reserve Board took too long to issue a plan to limit banks' physical commodities activities, several Senate Democrats said on Wednesday.

The bill reintroduced by Sens. Tom Carper, D-Del., and Roy Blunt, R-Mo., comes on the heels of customer data breaches at multiple high-profile retailers.

In an attempt to combat money laundering, JPMorgan Chase (JPM) is banning anonymous cash deposits into accounts at branches.

Community Bank-Wheaton/Glen Ellyn in Illinois has been released from a cease-and-desist order from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and state regulators.

House Republicans were sharply critical Wednesday of regulators' final Volcker Rule, warning that it adds an unnecessary and costly layer of regulation.

WASHINGTON — Changes in overall loan balances were muted in the last six weeks of 2013, with bankers in some regions reporting minor growth and those in other parts of the country seeing volume remain stagnant, the Federal Reserve Board said Wednesday.

The American Bankers Association announced Wednesday that it will drop its request for emergency relief in pending litigation over the Volcker Rule, but declined to stop the suit entirely.

Policymakers say they want to bring "underbanked" groups into the traditional banking system for safer consumer options, small-business growth, a sound banking system and other laudable reasons. But today's rules and aggressive enforcement work against these goals.

Apple will refund about $32 million to consumers after the government alleged the company charged minors for mobile app purchases without their parents' consent.