Regulation

After the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency cracked down on a $2.8 billion-asset bank, industry observers expect more scrutiny of the ties between banks and financial technology startups.

Technology designed to direct more consumers online can create difficulties for groups that rely on branches and other in-person services, according to Janis Bowdler, a racial equity counselor with the Treasury Department.

Though fewer people are writing checks, banks of all sizes are seeing a massive increase in check fraud since 2020. Recouping losses from bad checks is pitting banks against each other, and regulators may have to weigh in.

The 2012 order, which came alongside fines to U.S. authorities totaling nearly $2 billion, had sullied the London-based bank's reputation. "Over the last decade HSBC's employees have worked hard to transform the bank's financial crime risk management capabilities," HSBC says.

The cybersecurity crisis arising from super-fast computing is approaching more quickly than the industry and its regulators may realize.

A decade ago, Think Finance partnered with Native American tribes in an effort to avoid state interest-rate caps on consumer loans. After the company's legal woes finally ended this month, court documents shed light on its rapid rise and steep fall.

The Center for Responsible Lending, the Woodstock Institute and other left-leaning groups argue that the $13.4 billion merger will harm low-income communities, reduce small-business lending and add to systemic risk.