Opinions

The Department of Labor said Tuesday it is launching a probe into whether Wells Fargo violated labor laws by instituting stringent sales quotas — practices that led to a $190 million settlement with federal regulators earlier this month.

WASHINGTON — The Commodity Futures Trading Commission announced a $400,000 settlement with Wells Fargo over violations of agency reporting rules related to the bank’s swaps business — the latest in a string of public relations headaches for the embattled bank.

The parent company of the consumer lender LendUp has been fined more than $6.3 million by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the California Department of Business Oversight for overcharging borrowers and violating payday and installment lending laws.

The bad-news stories about the largest institutions are worrisome in light of housing finance proposals that could benefit the big banks even more.

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump used the first debate late Monday to attack the Federal Reserve Board, reiterating accusations that it has purposely kept interest rates low to help President Obama.

Federal Reserve Gov. Daniel Tarullo laid out a sweeping vision of the future of the central bank's hallmark supervisory stress testing program — a vision that involves major concessions to midsize regionals and puts added pressure of the largest and most systemically risky banks.

A bipartisan duo of lawmakers announced Monday they are forming the Congressional Blockchain Caucus in an effort to educate policymakers on digital currency and related issues.

Debbie Matz, a former chairman of the National Credit Union Administration, has joined the board of Mutual of Omaha Bank in Nebraska.

American Express can prohibit merchants from steering customers to credit cards with lower transaction fees, a federal appeals court ruled in a case involving about $50 billion of merchant fees annually.

American Express Co. can prohibit merchants from steering customers to credit cards with lower transaction fees, a federal appeals court ruled in a case involving about $50 billion of merchant fees annually.