Regulation

During the pandemic-induced lockdowns, the Federal Reserve loosened a rule requiring banks to cap certain savings withdrawals at six per month. Some banks have since dropped ceilings and associated fees, while others have stood pat.

Binance Holdings Ltd. is under investigation by the Justice Department and IRS, ensnaring the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange in U.S. efforts to root out illicit activity that’s thrived in the red-hot but mostly unregulated market.

Regulators around the world are exploring how to assess banks' exposures to climate change risks. But they'll have to tackle legal, economic and modeling problems that don’t have obvious solutions.

Some worry the Senate’s rejection of the OCC rule hampers efforts to clarify legal standards for banks selling loans to fintechs.

A Federal Reserve proposal that would require banks to give merchants more choices in routing certain debit transactions could be a prelude to a more consequential change: a lower cap on interchange fees for banks with more than $10 billion of assets.

While the eventual emergence from lockdown will help ease the pressure on overworked compliance departments, there is still an obvious need for tools that will make the anti-money laundering process simpler and stress-free, says SmartSearch's Martin Cheek.

Acting Comptroller of the Currency Michael Hsu said he plans to prioritize "solving urgent problems and addressing pressing issues" until the Biden administration selects a permanent head of the agency.

The banks disclosed this week that they are under scrutiny for conduct that may have harmed consumers. The timing raises questions about whether the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau under President Biden is poised to bring more enforcement actions against large banks than it did under Trump-appointed Director Kathy Kraninger.

The visibility of automated transactions provides a clear view of the flow of transactions, says Hummingbird's Joe Robinson.

Critics say the regulation issued by the Office of the Comptroller Currency is a gift to predatory lenders. But the trade organizations warned lawmakers that invalidating it will make it difficult for the agency to create an improved framework in the future.