Opinions

The Federal Reserve played a behind-the-scenes role in facilitating the sale of PacWest Bancorp, providing an enticement to private-equity interests to make a deal happen, according to agency records and recent comments by a prominent banking lawyer.

Kunal Mehta, also known by the alias "Shrek," used shell companies and bulk cash drops to clean millions for a cybercrime ring that stole $263 million.

Federal Reserve Gov. Stephen Miran argues that banks holding excess reserves are keeping the central bank's balance sheet bigger than it should be, and suggested that regulatory changes could help bring those reserves down.

Travis Hill's nomination to lead the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. was recommended favorably by the Senate Banking Committee to the full Senate Wednesday morning in a 13-11 party-line vote.

The proposal to push up some federal deposit insurance coverage to $10 million per account would encourage banks to take excessive risks while leaving consumers with the bill.

An October staff memo from the Federal Reserve's Division of Supervision and Regulation outlines changes to how supervisory activities will be carried out, including a greater emphasis on relying on examinations conducted by state banking supervisors.

Federal Reserve Gov. Christopher Waller said in a speech Monday that private and public-sector data suggests that the labor market is continuing to weaken, making a 25 basis point rate cut in December a prudent choice.

The Virginia-based bank had been an example of what can go wrong when banks partner with fintechs. After being released from an OCC enforcement action, Blue Ridge is now focused on operating as a traditional community bank, said CEO Billy Beale.

ICBA argues Bridge's stablecoin model pushes the trust charter beyond its intended fiduciary scope.