Law and regulation

Special FDIC protection for losses suffered by failed-bank buyers still exists, but a better real estate market and bidders' increased confidence in their asset management skills are making it rarer.

Shareholders for M&T and Hudson City will meet next week to vote on the banks' merger, though a Fed review of M&T's anti-money-laundering compliance could throw a wrench in the works.

The 25th Card Forum & Expo brought hundreds of payments professionals together in Boca Raton, Fla. to share strategies and ideas. Here's a recap of some of the most talked about subjects from the event.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau "has been a good communicator" with the banking industry and "has done some positive things" but also has "a big job to do," says Bank of the West's Andy Harmening, a senior executive vice president and regional banking group head. Harmening discusses the advantages and pitfalls of dealing with the new regulatory agency at American Banker's annual Best Practices in Retail Banking Symposium.

Rep. Maxine Waters moderated a wide-ranging debate on the housing finance system Friday.

Numerous components of Basel III could empower bank regulators to increase the amount of capital banks hold, especially for large banks.

Federal law gives President Obama the ability to remove the Federal Housing Finance Agency's acting director and replace him with one of three deputies, New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman's office concludes.

The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision said Friday it is closely evaluating the differences in how countries implement the Basel III accord.

After months of concern about MasterCard's April l9 liability shift for ATM owners accepting Maestro cards, the National ATM Council says it has established a workable solution with the card brand's offer of fraud screening. But another ATM trade group isn't celebrating just yet.

The Securities and Exchange Commission is pressing large banks like Citi, B of A and JPMorgan to provide investors with more accurate information about structured notes, complex securities that are often sold to wealthy individuals.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency on Thursday extended the government's Home Affordable Refinance Program for an additional two years through 2015. The program was set to expire at the end of this year.

As part of a regular update of its finances, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. said it will return amounts from the 2009 prepayment that were unnecessary.

Lawmakers grilled the OCC and Fed on Thursday over the failed independent foreclosure review, including their extensive use of independent consultants to carry out much of the work.

Share buybacks have been dormant at big banks and dividends remain slim, but capital payouts are gaining momentum after this winter’s stress tests.

The Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission have jointly adopted new rules to enable financial firms to set up programs to locate evidence of attempts to steal personal information and to deter identity theft.

Websites critical of a settlement that Visa Inc. and MasterCard Inc. reached with retailers over so-called swipe fees are misleading and must be corrected, a federal judge said.

MasterCard will vet all Maestro card transactions at U.S. ATMs with fraud-screening software to alleviate the concerns of ATM owners who are not prepared for the card brand’s April 19 liability shift.

The sensitivity now present at the highest levels of the Fed, OCC and FDIC offers great promise to consumers looking to acquire responsible loans from the banking industry.

President Obama met Thursday with chief executives from the largest U.S. banks, including Bank of America Corp., JPMorgan Chase & Co., Citigroup and Goldman Sachs, according to a White House official.

The OCC is seeking enforcement powers against the consultants it requires banks to hire, but having such authority may be a limited fix at best.