Opinions

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is applauding the Treasury Department for guidance it issued Thursday that would help members of the military avoid foreclosure.

When Michel Barnier of the European Commission singled out auditors for enhanced scrutiny this week, he was reacting to anger, in Europe at least, over the "no bark, no bite" behavior of accounting "watchdogs" before, during, and after the financial crisis.

The Durbin Amendment on debit interchange has been cited as reason for banks to shutter branches. Still, some observers believe it is one of many factors, if not the scapegoat, for closures that were necessary regardless of regulatory change.

Is Bank of America charging for debit cards because it is shortsighted or because it is too bloated to compete against smaller institutions for consumer accounts?

At the bailout law's three-year anniversary, the Small Business Lending Fund has offered some banks a way out. But with that escape hatch now closed, roughly 400 small banks remain stuck in the program.

Bank of America Corp., the largest bank by assets, plans to start charging its checking customers $5 per month, or $60 annually, if they use their debit cards to make purchases. The fees will go into effect early next year.

"In financial ecosystems, evolutionary forces have often been survival of the fattest rather than the fittest." So says Andrew Haldane, Executive Director for Financial Stability at the Bank of England. He is right.

The overall level of current and performing mortgage loans fell slightly in the second quarter as early stage delinquencies ticked up, according to the latest mortgage metrics report.

Rep. Ron Paul will hold a hearing Tuesday on the results of the government's audit of the Federal Reserve's emergency lending programs introduced amid the financial crisis.

Boston Federal Reserve Bank president Eric Rosengren wants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to do more to refinance homeowners and address housing market problems.