Policy & Regulation

Lenders press Congress to restart — and revamp — the Paycheck Protection Program; Fed corrects stress test error for Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs; M&T's new fintech unit rolls out first product; and more from this week's most-read stories.

The financial industry has praised the measured approach taken in a pending regulation on permitted communications with consumers. But two recent complaints by the bureau against debt collectors reflect a potentially aggressive enforcement stance.

The four-year plan submitted as part of its acquisition of E-Trade includes grants to community development organizations and support for uniform vendor diversity standards.

The plan would encourage more risk-taking by big banks, which would put the industry and taxpayers in harm’s way, write former CFPB Director Richard Cordray and Camden Fine, onetime head of the Independent Community Bankers of America.

The pandemic has spurred a major push toward speedier digital transactions, making it an expeditious time for the Faster Payments Council to expand the range of input it gets to expand its mission.

The stock market has reached record highs despite rampant unemployment, recession and a global pandemic. What gives?

Acting Comptroller of the Currency Brian Brooks and Department of Financial Services Superintendent Linda Lacewell stuck to opposing scripts on whether federal or state regulators are best equipped to protect consumers and supervise new entrants into the banking system.

The Senate Banking Committee met Wednesday to review central bank lending facilities such as the Main Street Lending Program, which provides bank-issued loans to middle-market firms. But some lawmakers on the panel said the focus of pandemic relief has been misplaced.

A pandemic-driven surge in bank deposits helped drive the agency's insurance reserves below their statutory minimum.

The final version of the amended rule, like the original proposal, makes fair-lending claims tougher to prove. But it does soften language that otherwise might have allowed mortgage companies to use algorithms to prove nondiscrimination.