Policy & Regulation

The “ability-to-repay” regime eviscerates fundamental principles of a mortgage “market.” It will not guarantee against a housing bubble and crash. It will constrain the availability of credit and increase home financing costs.

The “ability-to-repay” regime eviscerates fundamental principles of a mortgage “market.” It will not guarantee against a housing bubble and crash. It will constrain the availability of credit and increase home financing costs.

Community Bank System (CBU) in DeWitt, N.Y., will take a $6.9 million loss in the fourth quarter after selling collateralized-debt obligations and other securities in response to concerns over the Volcker Rule.

December was one of the most active months for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau as it took several enforcement actions spanning from mortgage servicing to indirect auto lending. A number of cases were key milestones for the agency as it partnered with federal and state authorities as well as employed some controversial legal theories such as disparate impact. Here’s a countdown of the big cases for the month.

Including the Wells settlement, Fannie has collected nearly $14 billion from eight large mortgage lenders since the start of 2013.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. still faces questions over how its resolution platform for systemically important firms will work. But international dialogue, a document detailing the agency's resolution strategy and the endorsement of a key rating agency highlighted progress during the year.

Commercial lending perked up after the government shutdown ended, though bankers are still having to cut deals on pricing to land business. Consumer lending continued to decelerate.

United Community Banks (UCBI) in Blairsville, Ga., plans to redeem $180 million of stock issued under the Treasury Department's Troubled Asset Relief Program along with $16.8 million of other outstanding preferred stock.

Brazil will boost levies on withdrawals abroad to restrain a widening current account deficit and prevent a six-percentage point gap in tax levels from reducing the use of credit cards.

The Volcker Rule is a veritable leviathan in size and complexity, but the jury is out on whether it can truly avert another London Whale-type fiasco. Don’t hold your breath.