Policy & Regulation

The Senate Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs Committee approved legislation Wednesday that would require federal agencies to be more transparent in settlements reached with banks and other companies for breaking the law.

WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve Board on Wednesday took yet another incremental step to pare down its stimulus program to $25 billion.

Bank of America's Countrywide unit was ordered to pay $1.3 billion in penalties for defective mortgage loans it sold to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in the run-up to the 2008 financial crisis, a little more than half of what the U.S. had requested.

The Justice Department's legal case against American Express will not benefit consumers and will weaken competition, said Jeff Campbell, executive vice president and CFO of American Express.

Lenders aren't keeping pace with a mounting backlog of applications for federal mortgage aid, placing some borrowers at increasing risk of losing their homes to foreclosure, according to the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program.

The legislation, sponsored by Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer, R-Mo., would delay implementation of a provision of Basel III capital rules that establishes higher requirements on mortgage servicing rights.

The Justice Department's legal case against American Express will not benefit consumers and will weaken competition, said Jeff Campbell, executive vice president and CFO of American Express.

An in-depth look by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau into its consumer complaint database has yielded some surprising insights, including a relative lack of grievances against payday lenders and that most consumers appear satisfied by companies' response.

WASHINGTON — Federal and state regulators announced a settlement Tuesday with Colfax Capital Corp. and its subsidiary over charges it "lured" 17,000 U.S. servicemembers into expensive loans with hidden charges and withheld information on billing statements.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. issued five corrective actions and three money penalties in June, according to the agency's monthly roundup of regulatory actions.