Policy & Regulation

To survive, Bitcoin businesses will have to do more than "de-anonymize" their operations. They will also have to cope with the loss of the digital currency’s most fundamental characteristic: irrevocability.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau appears close to clamping down on fees on account overdrafts and payday loans. That's left some observers fearful low-income consumers will end up losing access to financial services many count on to make ends meet.

Insurers and brokerages have myriad reasons for setting up bank subsidiaries, including lower funding costs and a broader array of customer services. But increased regulatory scrutiny is prompting many to change their thinking. Here's a look at nonbanks that have or are looking to shed bank charters, citing the cost and time commitment related to complying with the Dodd-Frank Act and other obligations.

With the government cracking down on digital currency players such as Liberty Reserve and Mt. Gox, many ask whether it's a move to squash the development of virtual currencies and what action the government will take next.

The Financial Stability Oversight Council voted to identify an initial group of nonbank firms as potential threats to financial stability. Under the Dodd-Frank reform law, the FSOC has the responsibility to name several nonbank financial companies as systemically risky.

Even if Congress passes a comprehensive reform bill, many immigrants eligible for citizenship may never apply because they can't afford the application and legal fees. Banks should loan them the money, activists say.

Fidelity Southern (LION) in Atlanta is planning to raise $60 million in a public offering and use the proceeds, along with cash on hand, to exit the Treasury Department's Troubled Asset Relief Program.

Banks are increasingly competing with nonbanks to develop products for low-income and underserved customers. Here are the crucial questions they need to ask about regulation, technology and the competitive landscape.

Let’s be cautious about scrapping the Camels rating system without fully understanding why it supposedly failed. Any human endeavor is prone to failure, as any system is subject to improvement.

President Obama's moves to rein in patent litigation should ease the squabbling over intellectual property that's hampered innovation in payments and should also reduce banks' legal costs.