Regulation

The number of customers who obtained 10 payday loans in 2015 outnumbered those who obtained just one, the California Department of Business Oversight said in a report Wednesday.

Republican lawmakers have asked the Treasury Department's inspector general to investigate whether the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's policies are encouraging banks to cut ties with entire lines of business or banks in other countries.

Installment lenders are concerned that efforts by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to curb the most abusive and predatory practices associated with payday loans will wreak havoc on their business.

Federal Reserve Board Gov. Daniel Tarullo acknowledged that capital requirements for smaller banks are too complicated, suggesting they could be retooled to be like earlier Basel Committee standards.

Under Rep. Jeb Hensarling’s proposed legislation, some banks might raise capital levels to get regulatory relief. Others might choose to grin and bear the current level of micromanagement. The result would be a more diverse banking sector.

Wells Fargo got less than it wanted in a federal tax-refund lawsuit, yet the bank's partial victory may spur billions of dollars in similar refund claims from companies that have done repeated mergers and acquisitions, tax lawyers say.

The scheme is used by borrowers who don't have enough income to qualify for a regular mortgage, so they apply for a higher-rate non-owner-occupied loan.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency has opened the door to experimenting with front-end credit risk transfer transactions, but it is not wide enough for some market players.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is keeping lenders in the dark about how it will ensure borrower data is secure and private under the expanded Home Mortgage Disclosure Act reporting requirements.

While fintech companies are urging federal regulators to create a federal charter that would allow them to follow a single national standard instead of a myriad of state rules, such a benefit will almost certainly come with strings attached, including possible compliance with the Community Reinvestment Act.