Law and regulation

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.

OpenCoin, Chris Larsen's virtual-currency venture, announced today it has closed funding from several investors, including Bitcoin Opportunity Fund.

Credit card companies, investment advisors and other financial firms will be required to set up programs to flag and deter identity theft, U.S. regulators said Wednesday.

WASHINGTON — The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is asking lawmakers to expand its authority to take enforcement actions against independent contractors that it requires banks to hire.

President Obama unveiled his long awaited budget plan on Wednesday, offering a more detailed look at the financial health of the Federal Housing Administration and introducing several key banking proposals.

The lead Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, Rep. Maxine Waters, is considering certain changes to the Dodd-Frank Act.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released a 45-page compliance guide for small banks and mortgage lenders to better understand how to comply with the "qualified mortgage" rule that requires lenders to ensure borrowers have the ability to repay a loan.