Opinions

Warren's voice is powerful in criticizing big banks, but she could play a more active role in providing relief to community banks to help boost job creation.

American Banker readers share their views on the most pressing banking topics of the week. Comments are excerpted from reader response sections of AmericanBanker.com articles and our social media platforms.

WASHINGTON — The government should encourage the development of the fintech sector, but should not grant a safe harbor for such firms, Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., said Thursday.

WASHINGTON — Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton would engage in a review of financial regulations and simplify or eliminate those that are found to be unnecessary if she is elected president, a top adviser said Thursday.

Some analysts are suggesting Wells Fargo should start closing branches, in order to move beyond the phony-accounts scandal, make up for an expected drop in fee income from reduced cross-selling — and position itself for a digital future.

As Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac continue to experiment with upfront risk-sharing deals, some small mortgage lenders fear they will be left out of the action.

Without investigations by the Los Angeles Times and city prosecutors, the Wells Fargo account scandal would never have come to light. Where were federal regulators?

The new CEO has vowed to clean up the sales practices that tarnished the bank's reputation and cost John Stumpf his job. But skeptics from Wall Street to Capitol Hill say Sloan, too, was "culpable" in the phony account-opening scandal and that only an outsider can fix what ails the nation's third-largest bank.

A federal appeals court ruling against the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has raised questions about whether banks and other firms cited by the agency can protest previous enforcement actions. But doing so may create new risks for firms.

In states with strict rules on small-dollar loans, lenders could see an opening in the language of the CFPB rule to actually hike rates, observers say.