BNY Mellon snags tech exec from Bank of America

Sabet Elias, chief technology officer, Bank of New York Mellon
Sabet Elias has been named the trust bank's chief technology officer and will report to another BofA alum, Bridget Engle.

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'It is an issue for all of us': Dissent spreads at CFPB over top aide's writings

Eric Blankenstein, head of CFPB enforcement
What started as a single senior official at the CFPB voicing concerns about blog posts written 14 years ago by Eric Blankenstein, a top agency political appointee, is rapidly becoming a rising chorus of discontent.

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Top CFPB official yanks support for political appointee over past writings

CFPB's Patrice Ficklin.
The head of the agency's fair-lending office cast doubt on a proposed reorganization of her office and raised concerns about blog posts written years ago by the political appointee overseeing the project.

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Lisa Stevens, key figure in Wells Fargo fake-accounts saga, is out

Signage is displayed outside a Wells Fargo bank branch in Los Angeles.
Stevens will step down this month as head of the Western region, which had been cited for widespread customer-integrity violations. However, she had been credited with raising concerns about aggressive sales practices.

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Bank of America's Anne Finucane is ready for her next challenge

Bank of America's Anne Finucane.
Finucane has tackled some sizable problems at Bank of America in recent years, so it makes perfect sense she's been tasked to manage one of the thorniest issues facing big banks today: leading BofA's European operations in the wake of Brexit.

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CFPB official tries to defuse furor over his 'provocative' writings

CFPB headquarters
Exterior of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Washington, DC USA
Eric Blankenstein, a political appointee overseeing fair-lending policy at the agency, said in an email to staff that his blog posts from 14 years ago that used a racial epithet "reflected poor judgment."

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Three laws signed by California governor will hit lenders

California Gov. Jerry Brown
Jerry Brown, governor of California, speaks during a Bloomberg Television interview at the Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco, California, U.S., on Friday, Sept. 14, 2018. The Global Climate Action Summit brings together industry and political leaders working on improving the conditions and concerns facing climate in the world today. Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg
Among the three measures is a requirement for boards of publicly traded firms to include more women.

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Smartphone brand can reflect creditworthiness: FDIC study

iPhone
An Apple Inc. iPhone XS sits on display during a sales launch at a store in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., on Friday, Sept. 21, 2018. The iPhone XS is up to $200 more expensive than last years already pricey iPhone X and represents one of the smallest advances in the product lines history. But that means little to the Apple Inc. faithful or those seeking to upgrade their older iPhone. Photographer: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg
A paper released by the agency's Center for Financial Research says aspects of someone's digital footprint — including whether they use Apple or Android — help predict likelihood of default.

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Fifth Third shooting survivor: 'Every day has been better than the last'

Whitney Austin, digital lending product manager, Fifth Third Bancorp
Whitney Austin is still recovering after being shot 12 times by the man who killed three people in the Cincinnati bank's headquarters branch last month. The digital product manager has a new cause, has formed a foundation and is rethinking working life as she prepares to return to the bank.

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Floodgates open? De novo applications surge at FDIC

AB-100318-FDIC
Applications this year are more than double the 2017 mark and the most since 2009. But with some fintechs withdrawing their bids, observers are urging caution.

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