Opinions

Recent delays may be frustrating, but the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency isn't closing the door on financial technology companies. However, applicants will have to be patient, forthright about their business plans and willing to actively engage any state or federal regulatory agencies that the OCC consults.

Congress had been close to passing legislation to help banks serve cannabis firms. Now Democratic leaders have all but abandoned the effort, prioritizing a riskier proposal to decriminalize the drug.

Sens. Sherrod Brown and Elizabeth Warren criticized Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell over reg relief policies instituted by the central bank, signaling that some progressive lawmakers may be reluctant to give him a second term.

The agreement will likely end a three-year-old dispute over allegations that the company misled borrowers by promising no hidden fees on its consumer loans.

As the Federal Reserve mulls whether to establish its own digital currency, Chair Jerome Powell told lawmakers that cryptocurrencies designed to have the stability of bank deposits and money market funds should be regulated accordingly.

Fiscal restraint, the reversal of enormous amounts of monetary stimulus, smarter regulation and job retraining are among the public policy steps that could interrupt the long U.S. tradition of boom-and-bust cycles.

The president has a chance to make his mark on the central bank as the terms of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and Vice Chair of Supervision Randal Quarles near their end. He will face pressure from progressives to pick reform-minded leaders, while moderate Democrats and Republicans in the narrowly divided Senate might favor reappointing Powell.

PNC, Regions and TD are among the banks that have taken steps to reduce their reliance on charges that disproportionately hit consumers living paycheck to paycheck. The changes come at a time when the Biden administration is expected to take a tougher stance on overdrafts.

Fintech companies with narrow-purpose banking charters pose a safety-and-soundness risk and should be denied access to the payment system and other perks unless they meet the same strict regulatory criteria as traditional financial institutions, trade groups for banks and credit unions told the Federal Reserve.

Income share agreements, which allow college graduates to repay tuition financing as a percentage of their future income, have come under fire lately from consumer advocates for questionable marketing and other potential legal violations. Some hope a partnership between a Virginia bank and an ISA provider will give the product more legitimacy, while others worry it just masks risks for borrowers.