Policy & Regulation

Two community banks — Community Bankers Trust in Richmond, Va., and Charter Financial in West Point, Ga. — have reached early terminations of loss-share agreements with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

The Justice Department's announcement that it would target individual executives at banks and other companies that are being investigated for wrongdoing has sparked a debate about whether the move is actually substantive or instead just designed to boost the agency's public image.

Arthur Levitt, the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission from 1993 to 2001, will become an adviser to the marketplace lender Social Finance.

The consumer agency, which recently reached a large settlement with JPMorgan Chase over collections practices, turned its focus Wednesday to the country's two largest debt buyers.

Comptroller of the Currency Thomas Curry said banks could consider loan-to-value ratios above 90% to help revitalize areas hurt by the housing crisis.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau imposed up to $79 million in penalties and refunds Wednesday in enforcement actions against the country's two largest debt buyers.

The key to housing finance reform is a new securitization model that allows the private sector to price and absorb the majority of housing credit risk.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has a busy agenda for the fall that includes possible action on debt collection and prepaid cards, though the agency's overall workload may cause delays.

Nearly 20 trade groups representing lenders, banks, credit unions, title companies and others are urging federal regulators to provide guidance on how they plan to enforce a new mortgage disclosure regime that goes into effect Oct. 3.

The American Bankers Association has planned a financial literacy campaign to help seniors and their caregivers guard against financial fraud.