Regulation

Banks are calling on federal agencies to revamp and delay implementation of a package of proposals that will transform financial regulation.

TCF, the Wayzata, Minn., bank recorded a $20 million charge in response to new regulatory requirements for loans to homeowners who have been through bankruptcy. The directive has hurt profits at a slew of banks.

Just in time for the election, financial policy wonks without access to Facebook now have a resource for wasting precious work time. The election website for Reuters features an application letting you fill key economic positions in either an Obama or Romney administration.

Until regulators are made more independent of the bankers they supervise, all the lawsuits and campaign promises in the world won't fix the financial system, says Neil Barofsky, former special inspector general of Tarp.

Citigroup Inc. (C) was fined $2 million after a junior analyst improperly disclosed confidential information before Facebook Inc.'s initial public offering, Massachusetts' top financial watchdog said.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau seeks to oversee debt collectors, changes of leadership get close scrutiny, bankers band together to avoid the fiscal cliff.

The Dodd-Frank QM rule will restrict the availability of credit, but it can be less invasive if the CFPB develops a model that weighs all relevant risk factors, not just a few measures of capacity to repay.

A report by Federal Financial Analytics concludes that the FDIC has made admirable progress implementing the part of the Dodd-Frank Act that gives it the authority to unwind large financial companies in trouble, but there are are still a number of outstanding issues that need to be resolved.

The leading insurer in the force-placed market is working to make its products more flexible as regulators push on pricing and payments to servicers. Some large banks are changing their practices, too.

If Romney wins the White House, Republicans will likely push through changes to the CFPB's leadership structure, but could butt heads in the short term with Director Richard Cordray.