Policy & Regulation

Bankers blamed regulators' new methodologies for rating certain energy loans – and a new two-stage shared national credit review process – for an increase in downgrades and loan-loss provisions. Regulators reportedly are reacting to an increase in second liens tied to exploration and production companies.

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.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is expected on May 5 to release a proposal that would allow consumers to band together in class action lawsuits even if there is an arbitration agreement.

Regulators had a litany of complaints about big banks' living wills in the assessments released last week, covering everything from cash flow to operational decision making, but one that is flummoxing bankers is an item they say is out of their control: ring-fencing.

A federal district judge ruled that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has no power to investigate the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools, an embattled accreditor of for-profit colleges. The ruling marks the first time a court has said the bureau had no jurisdiction and overreached its statutory authority.

Rep. Randy Neugebauer introduced a bill Thursday that is designed to reverse some of the negative effects of legislation enacted last year that cut the dividend the Fed pays larger banks. His bill would allow banks to redeploy capital held at the Fed.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is expected to finalize its second round of mortgage servicing rules in July, a top agency official said. Laurie Maggiano, a program manager for servicing and secondary markets at the CFPB, also offered insights into the bureau's long-anticipated rulemaking on debt collection.

Banking regulators made several critically important changes in their new plan to restrict executive pay at financial institutions after their first attempt flopped in 2011. Here's what they did.

The Paris Agreement on limiting the rise in global temperatures opens up new lending opportunities related to low-carbon projects while highlighting an array of new risks for financial institutions.

Federal regulators unveiled a long-awaited proposal Thursday designed to target incentive-based pay arrangements for executives at banks and credit unions, the agencies' second attempt after their initial plan met fierce resistance.