Opinions

Speaking at the annual Best Practices in Retail Financial Services Symposium, U.S. Bank CEO Richard Davis and Citizens Republic CEO Cathleen Nash urged retail bankers to consider a proactive approach to new industry regulations.

Certain large banks emerged as stalwarts among their competitors following severe tests by the Federal Reserve Board. Others, such as Citigroup Inc. and Ally Financial, fared less well.

WASHINGTON — The release of the last few details of the $25 billion mortgage servicing settlement this week revealed a deal that was, overall, not quite as bad for the banks as many observers and analysts expected.

The go-go years of financial services growth are over. Today the focus is on capital adequacy, strict underwriting standards and conservative investing. The panicked days of September 2008 that spawned the Dodd-Frank Act mean the days of light-touch regulation also are gone.

The Fed's results found Ally Financial Inc. in the weakest position in a hypothetical scenario in which the economy experienced a nosedive. Citigroup Inc. and SunTrust Banks Inc. would just barely fall short of capital minimums in such an event.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. led a flurry of the biggest U.S. banks in announcing dividend raises and stock buybacks, two days before the Federal Reserve was set to release the results of this year's stress tests.

The Federal Reserve has reached a written agreement with Central Bancorp Inc. in Garland, Texas.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development's inspector general issued five reports about foreclosure-handling practices at five major U.S. banks: Wells Fargo, Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup and Ally Financial.

The window of opportunity to get away with questionable fees on reloadable prepaid cards may be narrowing.

John Walsh, the acting Comptroller of the Currency, told attendees they shouldn't expect surprises from the OCC's exam process. Martin Gruenberg, acting chairman of the FDIC, added that big banks should face the same market forces as smaller institutions, including the threat of failure.