Regulation

Top Federal Reserve Board officials are cautiously eyeing the possibility that a new liquidity proposal may incite a collateral shortfall just as the central bank starts to unwind its easy-money policies.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is treading a fine line between protecting individuals from wrongdoing and acting as if it knows what's good for them. American Banker staffers discuss how behavioral economics is shaping its policy decisions.

Nearly half of the large banks surveyed said mortgage applications were either "moderately" or "substantially" lower, according to a Fed survey released Monday.

The CFPB has referred at least three auto lenders to the Justice Department for further investigation into possible fair lending violations, even as lawmakers continue to question the agency's authority.

The Treasury Department plans to auction seven more lenders' Troubled Asset Relief Program shares, with a total face value of about $90 million.

No market should over-rely on one entity. But references in regulations and lending guidelines to the dominant credit score provider have created unintentional government brand endorsement and blocked new entrants.

Taylor Capital Group (TAYC) in Chicago is buying back its outstanding Troubled Asset Relief Program shares as it waits to close its sale to MB Financial (MBFI).

JPMorgan Chase said that the Justice Department is conducting at least eight separate investigations into the bank's activities, ranging from recruitment in Asia to its relationship with Ponzi scheme operator Bernard Madoff.

Stopping a proposed requirement that banks offer "plain-vanilla" credit products was an industry victory in the run-up to Dodd-Frank, but many believe it still survived.