Housing finance reform in Congress is stalled, but Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (often under pressure from their regulator) are forming partnerships, developing new products and finding ways to share risk with the private sector to correct flaws in the housing system.

A federal appeals court has dealt the retail sector a setback in the ongoing fight over surcharges on credit card purchases.

Two new apps, Penny and Sense, highlight customers' most pressing and interesting financial information without making them search for it. The apps, inspired by Google Now, come as banks worldwide try to provide more sophisticated mobile features.

David H. Stevens, the Mortgage Bankers Association's president, pledged to "shine an aggressive spotlight on abusive enforcement" at the trade group's annual gathering, specifically calling out the Department of Justice.

The government's spotlight on servicing problems means companies should be taking steps now in the face of regulators' current enforcement authority and the potential of coming rules.

The third-largest county in Tennessee is looking to hire Ohio-based collection agency Capital Recovery Systems to help it pursue a combined $160 million that offenders owe in fines, fees and court costs.

The operators of an alleged tech support scam agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that they tricked consumers into paying millions of dollars for technical support services they did not need and software that was otherwise free.

Consumer litigation against collection agencies had mixed results in September with Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and Telephone Consumer Protection Act lawsuits dropping and Fair Credit Reporting Act litigation making a jump.

Fifth Third Bancorp in Cincinnati reported a higher third-quarter profit, although the restructuring of a commercial credit cut into the results.

Synovus Financial in Columbus, Ga., reported higher quarterly earnings that reflected an increase in fee income and cost control.

Bank of New York Mellon, the world’s second-largest custody bank, reported a third-quarter profit that beat analysts’ estimates as the company cut expenses to offset the impact of lower interest rates.

Regal Bank in Livingston, N.J., has agreed to buy Community First Bank in Somerset, N.J.

From interest rate risk to C-suite and boardroom diversity to succession planning, community bankers need to be acutely tuned in to a combination of global and domestic factors that are changing their world at an unprecedented pace.

Regions Financial in Birmingham, Ala., reported gains in loans and overall revenues in the third quarter, but its net income declined from the same period last year due to increases in its premium for federal deposit insurance and provision for loan losses.

Mortgage servicers have gotten a rare reprieve from the Federal Housing Administration.

The online lender Enova International has hired an ex-HSBC executive as its chief operating officer.

Revere Bank in Laurel, Md., has agreed to buy BlueRidge Bank in Frederick, Md.

General Electric is trying to entice its shareholders to exchange their stock for shares in Synchrony Financial, the spun-off credit card lender.

Bank of the Ozarks in Little Rock, Ark., is set to catapult over $10 billion in assets after agreeing to buy Community & Southern Holdings in Atlanta.

Merger-related expenses took a nearly $6 million bite out of third-quarter earnings at Wintrust Financial in Rosemont, Ill., but its chief executive predicted several recently completed deals will pay off sooner than anticipated.