Law and regulation

The Federal Reserve's Tuesday vote on Basel III capital rules resulted in mostly good news for small banks and a harsh but expected message for large ones. For institutions of all sizes much remains to be decided, however. American Banker's Donna Borak explains.

The industry doesn't need to invest millions in further education and legislation. The road to a good credit score is pretty straightforward.

There were three issues that dominated Washington in June: cybersecurity, CFPB rules and staffing problems, and the unexpected emergence of a bipartisan housing finance reform bill. Following are the stories you don't want to miss:

HSBC's $1.9 billion agreement with the U.S. to resolve charges it enabled Latin American drug cartels to launder billions of dollars was approved by a federal judge.

Prudential Financial Inc., the No. 2 U.S. life insurer, is contesting a U.S. finding that it poses a potential risk to the financial system, becoming the first company to challenge the tag that brings additional oversight.

Wells Fargo and HSBC are among four banks that submitted "living wills," or road maps to help regulators safely dismantle them if they fail. Royal Bank of Scotland and BNP Paribas also filed.

Community bankers emerged victorious Tuesday after regulators made a number of key changes to a final package of Basel III capital rules in an effort to address smaller institutions' concerns. But the biggest banks, in contrast, fared far worse.

The FTC's move to hold payment processors responsible for the deeds of unscrupulous merchants could result in higher prices or fewer choices for small businesses and consumers.

MetLife and Prudential Financial have been joined by state regulators challenging the Federal Reserve on how to oversee the biggest insurers under the Dodd-Frank law.

Big banks are facing unprecedented pressure from federal and state regulators to rein in their consumer credit card collections practices following revelations of improper behavior.

Companies that create goods or enhance existing services are seen as innovative and responsive. Businesses that impose fees without adding value often wind up paying a reputational price.

The Office of the Comptroller of Currency has begun issuing its examiners "best practice" guidelines to end big banks' use of faulty records in the sale of defaulted consumer debt. The move could threaten billions of dollars of sales to collections agencies.

Sen. Mike Crapo, the top Republican on the Senate Banking Committee, is asking the Government Accountability Office to look into the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's data collection efforts.

The former president of the failed Mutual Bank in Harvey, Ill., has been banned from the banking industry by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

The Federal Reserve Board on Tuesday met to vote on a final Basel III package, which represents the most significant overhaul of regulatory capital requirements for U.S. institutions.

Regulators are challenging banks’ relationships with disfavored businesses, citing the endlessly adaptable concept of reputation risk rather than law or regulation.

Two officers of an Arizona mortgage lender are going to prison for defrauding a Troubled Asset Relief Program recipient.

Members of the EMV Migration Forum are recommending a single common debit code for EMV transactions in the U.S. and plan to provide details later this summer for how the payments industry can implement it.

During the heyday of deregulation, Gerald Corrigan argued that banks' unique functions required a unique level of supervision and protection. The former Fed official's essay remains as relevant as ever.

JPMorgan Chase has stopped selling most of its bad loans to third-party collectors in recent months as it braces for regulatory action over its credit card debt collections practices.