Policy & Regulation

The plan that the Federal Housing Finance Agency floated calls for Freddie Mac to actively invest in some new closed-end seconds as cash-out refinancing subsides.

The Federal Reserve chair's comments coincide with the spring meeting of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group in Washington. They also come as groups like the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision are being scrutinized.

The Federal Home Loan Bank System stepped up advances by 37% or more to Silicon Valley, Signature and First Republic banks ahead of their failures, the GAO says in a post-mortem on last year's banking crisis. The findings add to the debate about whether the system should be a lender of last resort.

The Fed's willingness to rethink the Basel endgame is good news for banks, but many large institutions are still going to want to push forward with credit-linked notes and similar strategies.

Recent months have seen an uptick in enforcement actions against banks engaging in banking-as-a-service strategies. Observers are split on whether that enhanced scrutiny is temporary or terminal.

Business trade groups are expected to prevail in getting an emergency stay to stop the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's $8 late fee rule from going into effect on May 14. However, the lawsuit would still have many steps to go after such a decision.

Rep. Andy Barr, R-Ky., and Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., told the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that pursuing a rulemaking on forced arbitration, as laid out by consumer advocates' rulemaking petition, would be an "affront to Congress."

The collection of beneficial ownership data is vital to fighting money laundering. It should be more broadly accessible, and should cover more businesses.

The Federal Reserve Board governor and frequent regulatory critic says it would be appropriate for the U.S. to deviate from the agreed-upon international standards to reflect "unique characteristics" of the American banking system.

Unintended consequences of shifting the burden for title insurance to the lender could end up harming consumers, several observers said.