OCC

From scams to watch out for to the role banks play in an SBA virus loan program, news about the pandemic's impact was everywhere. Also: As State Farm bows out, U.S. Bank seizes an expansion opportunity; CFPB sues Fifth Third for allegedly opening phony accounts; and more from this week's most-read stories.

The OCC and FDIC’s proposal for modernizing the community reinvestment law would give banks below $500 million of assets the option to keep the current regime. But bankers and industry representatives say that threshold should be higher.

The agency's recent update to its guidelines for banks on working with data aggregators and other third parties was not extreme, but some critics say its heavy emphasis on security could be a setback for open banking.

The chair of the House Financial Services Committee, Maxine Waters, contends that Tim Sloan knowingly made misleading and inaccurate comments during a hearing before her panel last year.

State and federal officials committed to providing “appropriate regulatory assistance” to banks whose customers may be hurt by the coronavirus outbreak and said prudent measures would not be subject to criticism by examiners.

Sen. Mark Warner led a group of Democratic senators in calling on bank, credit union and GSE regulators to give detailed instructions on helping consumer and commercial borrowers hurt by the COVID-19 outbreak.

The company disclosed that an internal review of a now-discontinued loan program found that employees engaged in misconduct tied to income verification and requirements, among other things.

The agencies recommend steps financial institutions should take to proactively prevent disruption of operations, minimize contact between staff and consumers, and plan for how affected employees reenter the workplace, among other things.

The agencies recommend steps banks should take to proactively prevent disruption of operations, minimize contact between staff and customers, and plan for how affected employees reenter the workplace, among other things.

Most states have some kind of pricing limit on consumer loans. But proposals for a national usury law divide even Democrats, some of whom are concerned about restricting credit.