OCC

Amid their recent policy victories and record earnings, big banks have also been forced to grapple with the possibility that commercial lending — the lifeblood for large regionals — may never fully come back.

The plan, which the Federal Reserve Board approved Wednesday, would tailor compliance programs for banks based on their trading volume and revise definitions to help banks determine which trades are banned.

The bank sought to evade the consequences of compliance failures including weak scrutiny of transactions that could be tied to North Korea, the N.Y. banking superintendent said in demanding access to communications between the bank and its new supervisor, the OCC.

Just two months ago, Comptroller Joseph Otting seemed to signal that the OCC might be open to letting national banks rent their charters to payday lenders. Now he is clarifying that it won’t happen.

An OCC initiative to get more banks to make short-term loans that rival those of payday lenders isn't enough of an enticement.

More than a dozen lawmakers wrote to the banking agencies Friday, arguing that any regulatory reforms to the Community Reinvestment Act should focus on expanding access to credit.

While industry officials welcomed a bulletin from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency encouraging banks to develop alternatives to payday loans, they are making no commitments to offer such products.

The remarks by the comptroller of the currency came as his agency released a new report on emerging risks in the banking industry.

The NCUA board is considering adding as many as two additional payday alternative loan options for credit unions, and regulators have clarified a rule on severance claims after involuntary credit union liquidations.

Long-awaited modifications to proprietary trading ban are to be unveiled at an open meeting on May 30.