Policy & Regulation

The investigation into what the regulators knew, and when, is just beginning.

Stiffer oversight of banks with assets of $50 billion or more will keep New York Community Bancorp, of Westbury, N.Y., out of the M&A game until a major acquisition comes along, CEO Joseph Ficalora says.

A former Minnesota Vikings tight end has reached a settlement with federal regulators over his alleged misdeeds at a Minneapolis-area community bank.

David Cohen, the Treasury undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, urged banks and others in the financial industry to weigh in on a regulatory plan to require institutions to identify beneficial ownership of their account holders.

Industry groups want lawmakers to extend Dodd-Frank's unlimited insurance for transaction deposits, which is now mandatory for all banks. But TAG used to be voluntary, and some say it should be again.

"Federal Reserve Board Gov. Sarah Bloom Raskin urged regulators to narrow a proposed exemption to the Volcker Rule, saying it may allow banks to avoid compliance with the ban on proprietary trading," writes American Banker's Donna Boraks.

Many large merchants expressed outrage at the apparent laxity of the Federal Reserve Board's finalized rule that will allow non-exempt debit card issuers to collect a 1-cent fraud-prevention adjustment on debit card transactions.

This is no time to start unwinding the largest banks. There's enough uncertainty in this fragile economy. But starting a conversation now about the costs and benefits will lay the groundwork for sound action when conditions improve.

Legislation proposed by Democratic Sen. Tom Carper and Republican Sen. Roy Blunt could relieve some of the burden that financial institutions currently bear.

Edward DeMarco, the acting director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, on Tuesday defied both the Obama administration and widespread expectations that he would cave to a torrent of political pressure and allow Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to offer principal reductions to troubled borrowers.