Law and regulation

Legislation to reform the Federal Housing Administration sailed through the Senate Banking Committee on Wednesday, but the bill's future, along with that of broader, comprehensive mortgage reform, remain up in the air as Congress prepares to break for the August recess on Friday.

The proposal has calculations that would address deficiencies, but also tries to balance risk sensitivity with not making the derivatives counterparty charges overly complex.

A federal judge's ruling on the Durbin Amendment is likely to cost the banking industry billions of dollars each year.

"An Alternative Plan to Fix TBTF: Lay Big Banks' Subsidy Bare" (July 25), on Professor Cornelius Hurley's plan to account for implicit government subsidies, is an important contribution to the conversation on how to end Too Big to Fail.

Retailers were singing the praises of a federal judge's ruling July 31 that the Federal Reserve Board overstepped its authority in how it capped debit-card fees. And banks were humming a different tune.

President Barack Obama plans to name Federal Reserve Governor Sarah Bloom Raskin as deputy Treasury Secretary, making her the highest-ranking woman in the history of the Treasury department.

Relief bills are gaining momentum in Congress, leading many community bankers' to believe their regulatory burdens will ease by yearend.

The Senate Banking Committee approved legislation to reform the Federal Housing Administration on Wednesday to help stabilize the agency's beleaguered reverse mortgages program and strengthen its underwriting standards.

Federal regulators issued proposed guidance to help mid-tier banks comply with stress test requirements this October.

Just when banks thought they had adjusted to life under the Durbin cap on debit card interchange fees, a court has deal them a huge and unexpected blow. Bucking the usual judicial practice of deferring to regulators, a federal judge has ruled that the Fed set the cap too high at 21 cents and disregarded the intent of the Dodd-Frank Act. Expect appeals and a protracted fight that could take years to settle the matter.

The Federal Reserve disregarded Congress's intent when deciding how much banks can charge merchants for debit-card transactions, a judge ruled, rejecting Dodd-Frank-imposed regulations governing "swipe" fees.

The Federal Reserve disregarded Congress's intent when deciding how much banks can charge merchants for debit-card transactions, a judge ruled, rejecting Dodd-Frank-imposed regulations governing "swipe" fees.

An Oregon woman was awarded $18.6 million by a federal jury after spending two years unsuccessfully trying to get Equifax Information Services to fix mistakes on her credit report.

Sen. David Vitter is vowing to push for "tough" reforms to the Federal Housing Administration when the Senate Banking Committee takes up a bill to implement key changes at the agency on Wednesday.

The leaders of the Securities and Exchange Commission and Commodity Futures Trading Commission were pressed by lawmakers on Tuesday about their progress implementing new rules under the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act.

WASHINGTON — Federal regulators released proposed guidance on Tuesday designed to help medium-sized banks comply with company-run stress test requirements that kick in this fall.

A relief package proposed by three senators last week has reinforced hope that Capitol Hill will ease community banks' regulatory burden by yearend.

The City of Richmond has sent offer letters to roughly 32 mortgage servicers and trustees requesting that it be allowed to buy underwater home loans at reduced prices. If the servicers balk, city officials say they will seek to seize the properties through eminent domain.

Lawmakers pressed heads of the SEC and CFTC at a hearing on Tuesday about their progress implementing and enforcing new rules under the Dodd-Frank Act.

While many people think of Bitcoin as a currency, Jaron Lukasiewicz, CEO and co-founder of Coinsetter, says Bitcoin should be thought of more as a payments infrastructure, allowing quick, inexpensive funds transfer. But for Bitcoin to thrive, banks must agree with this perspective.