Banking Politics & Policy News
American Banker's Politics & Policy coverage delivers news and analysis on how legislative action, federal agency rulemaking, regulatory politics, and public policy debates shape banking strategy, risk, competition, and compliance. Coverage explores congressional priorities, executive branch initiatives, regulatory agency actions, and the political forces that shape and impact the operating environment for financial institutions, payments companies, fintechs and distributed finance companies.
Bank leaders must navigate a dynamic policy environment where congressional action, regulatory priorities, and political forces influence capital standards, supervisory expectations, digital asset frameworks, deposit insurance, consumer rules, and competitive dynamics.
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Banking executives and analysts worry that the Federal Reserve's aggressive plan to raise interest rates will be insufficient to tame inflation and overcome economic fallout from the war in Ukraine.
March 21
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Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the central bank will take the “necessary steps” to get inflation down even if that means increasing interest rates more rapidly than currently anticipated and eventually to levels that slow the broader economy.
March 21
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In an update to an exam manual, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau says racial or other bias associated with a wide range of financial products — not just credit — is illegal and subject to CFPB enforcement actions.
March 18
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European banks trying to decide whether and how to leave Russia in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine are finding that extracting themselves will be slow, costly, and may come with a reputational price no matter what they do.
March 18
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Four of five bills aimed at countering Russian aggression in Europe won significant bipartisan support from the House Financial Services Committee on Thursday. But the panel adopted a bill intended to expand the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network's ability to hunt down Russian assets over fierce Republican opposition.
March 17
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All five of the Biden administration's nominees received enough votes to secure passage to the Senate floor. Chair Sherrod Brown of Ohio called the moment "historic."
March 16
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The megabank will cover costs incurred by employees and family members who travel out of state to receive an abortion. The policy drew immediate fire from Republicans in Texas, which has banned abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, and where Citi has been tangling with the GOP over gun policies.
March 16
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The new law's reciprocal and custodial deposit provisions recognize what the evidence has shown for two decades. They should spur, not substitute for, the broader work of protecting America's depositors.
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As written, new capital standards for U.S. banks fail to account for the additional risk posed by many home loan clients who obtain second mortgages. Fixing the problem will significantly reduce the rule's benefit to banks.
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The only thing we know about the next financial crisis is that it won't look like the last one. But specific changes to bank safety and soundness requirements and clearer regulatory authorities would help us respond.
