Retail & Commercial

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama has signed a housing reform bill that will open the door for welfare recipients to use federal rent vouchers to purchase manufactured homes and become homeowners.

WASHINGTON — State bank associations threw their support behind a regulatory relief bill on Tuesday in hopes the legislation can gain traction in the Senate.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. is raising concerns about potential spillover effects from depressed oil prices even as banks had sounded more optimistic. Tougher capital requirements for energy lenders could be on the horizon.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau added its voice Tuesday to a chorus of other regulators in calling for sustainable foreclosure relief when the Home Affordable Modification Program expires at yearend.

In a political season teeming with tension around income inequality, racial economic disparities and animus toward the banking industry, reforming the Community Reinvestment Act seems like it should be a cornerstone of the debate. Yet the law has been almost entirely absent from the discussion. Here's why.

Some branch deals come with added value. A case in point is the $2 billion-asset Old Second Bancorp's agreement to buy a branch in Chicago from Talmer Bancorp in Troy, Mich. in a deal that includes deposits, assets and a vice chairman.

What was true in the late 1700s, the 1970s and the 1980s is still true today: bank customers want to interact with real-life people when managing finances.

In a perfect world, better financial literacy — along with equipping bankers with ethical standards — would make the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau obsolete.

Wells Fargo's embrace of Near Field Communication technology is rapidly approaching at least one milestone — a customer experience that does not require a card to use an ATM or pay in a store.

Chemung Financial in Elmira, N.Y., is calling for a do-over less than two weeks after releasing its second-quarter results.