Retail & Commercial

An overhaul of the bank regulatory system is past due, but the urge to start tearing up the rule book must be resisted in favor of precision and the thoughtful application of some basic principles.

Small lenders produced net interest margin expansion in the fourth quarter, thanks in large part to interest rate cuts in the second half of 2024. Festering inflation, however, threatens to lead to rate increases that could stall their momentum.

The San Francisco-based bank announced that another consent order with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has been terminated. The six-year-old order was related to the bank's risk compliance management and certain loan practices.

The biggest decline was a 9.9% drop in deposits quarter-on-quarter as of Dec. 31.

The Trump administration's nominee to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Jonathan McKernan, is seen as an institutionalist with a deep knowledge of policy. But whether he keeps the bureau shuttered or rebuilds it is uncertain.

An order permitting CSBH LLC in Powhattan, Virginia, to acquire a controlling stake in Industry Bancshares promises to give the Texas company a fresh start in one of the country's most attractive banking markets.

Serious delinquencies on auto loans rose to almost 3% in the fourth quarter of 2024, according to the New York Fed. Researchers blame the affordability problem on soaring car prices.

The heads of both the House and Senate banking committees introduced a Congressional Review Act resolution to undo the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's overdraft rule, a measure that only needs a simple majority in both chambers to pass.

While Freddie Mac's weekly survey showed 30-year rates falling, other indicators paint a mixed picture for mortgage lenders and borrowers.

Foreclosure filings increased 7% in January from December, which could be a housing market starting to experience trouble, or a post-holiday return to normal.