Law and regulation

Timothy Ryan is stepping down as president and chief executive of the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association next month, with former Rep. Kenneth Bentsen expected to take over.

The latest insurance company to leave banking behind is Shelter Insurance of Columbia, Mo., and the insurer blames the Dodd-Frank reform law.

The government agency has waived a compliance requirement for smaller community banks, removing a costly barrier of entry for hundreds of institutions.

With the new year, the Financial Stability Oversight Council has greater opportunity to take leadership roles in other areas.

Rep. Greg Walden (R-Ore.) on Monday announced plans to introduce legislation to take away the Treasury Department's ability to mint money to pay the federal government's bills.

Sen. Michael Crapo, an Idaho Republican, expected to take over as ranking member on the Senate Banking Committee this year, was named chief deputy whip for his party on Tuesday.

Community banks participating in a government program upped their lending to small businesses by $7.4 billion over baseline levels during the third quarter, according to a report released Tuesday by the Treasury Department.

A group of angel investors including SecondMarket founder Barry Silbert has invested $510,000 in BitPay, a firm that processes payments for merchants in the digital currency Bitcoin.

The FTC has reached a settlement against Freedom Companies, those behind a scam operating from the Dominican Republic that peddled fake mortgage assistance to Spanish-speaking homeowners in the U.S.

Shelter Insurance joins the growing list of insurers that are unwinding their banks amid mounting costs related to Dodd-Frank.

Federal regulators announced Monday an $8.5 billion settlement with 10 banks as a result of alleged foreclosure abuses.

The Federal Reserve Board has terminated an enforcement action against Farmers State Bank in Victor, Mont.

Dan Berger, the credit union group's executive vice president of government affairs, will succeed Fred Becker as chief executive.

The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision backed away from a strict international liquidity standard, giving more recognition to domestic funding structures.

The Charlotte bank says Monday's settlement is a significant step toward resolving its crisis-era woes, but other legal risks — particularly in connection with private-label mortgages — remain.

A "simplified" foreclosure review settlement is in borrowers' best interests, even though details remain sketchy, officials from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency argued Monday.

The Massachusetts Democrat, known for helping craft the Dodd-Frank reform law, may be putting his retirement on hold.

Some feel the looser standards will have a positive effect on the economy, while others argue the easing simply represents the latest example of regulators giving banks their way.

Rep. Luis Gutierrez, the third highest-ranking Democrat on the Financial Services Committee, is taking a leave of absence from the panel to focus on immigration reform.

As Washington continues the perpetual debate over how to regulate the industry post-crisis, these leaders will likely set the tone.