PayThink

This is no time to start unwinding the largest banks. There's enough uncertainty in this fragile economy. But starting a conversation now about the costs and benefits will lay the groundwork for sound action when conditions improve.

A year after the Fed enacted the Durbin amendment, predictions that swipe fee reform would kill free checking, hurt credit unions and stifle competition have failed to come true.

The modern, neo-Glass-Steagall advocacy has a mystical quality about it, an appeal that proposes to rise above the tough debate over the thorny details and reach back to a mythical time when bank regulation worked so very well.

Dodd-Frank "however good its intentions, has not and will not protect us against another meltdown," writes former senator Ted Kaufman. He's concerned about the growing size of big banks and what he views as fatal flaws in living wills. Want to really protect against another meltdown? Add that Kaufman-Brown amendment to the legistlation.

A majority of BankThink posts dedicated to risk assessment focus on tools, systems, agencies or legislation. Rarely do we talk about the people hired to implement them. Do you believe in risk managers?

Concerns about moral hazard should not prevent Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from helping underwater homeowners avoid foreclosure.

"I'm suddenly liking being a regional bank," said KeyCorp CEO Beth Mooney. Dodd-Frank "has created a different playing field," one in which she believes regionals may fare better than larger or smaller banks.

In a society where blatant expressions of discrimination are largely considered to be unacceptable, discrimination often takes on subtler and more insidious forms.

A Congressional investigation found HSBC engaged in money laundering and sanctions busting for ten years, in multibillion-dollar amounts. Perhaps not coincidentally, the bank has been disinvesting from the U.S. Let's invite them to complete their departure—fast.

Vermont may rank 49th in population, but lately the Green Mountain State has a new contender for the No. 1 slot when it comes to native production: Odd News out of Credit Unions.