CRA

The Treasury Department’s long-awaited report on modernizing the Community Reinvestment Act was heavy on glittering generalities but light on specifics, which explains why the report punted the real job of making needed reforms.

Critics argue that Community Reinvestment Act standards need to be more transparent, but creating more objective measures would require regulators to favor some types of loans over others.

The comptroller said he is looking to capitalize on the industry's strong profits and high capital reserves to reduce costs and lower exam fees next year.

Following its acquisition last November of Capital Bank in North Carolina, First Horizon will fund mortgage and small-business lending in low-income areas of the Southeast and expand its vendor relationships with minority-owned firms.

Bank regulators have not even proposed a plan yet for revamping the Community Reinvestment Act, but stakeholders likely to weigh in on the plan are already establishing battle lines.

Comptroller of the Currency Joseph Otting laid out an ambitious regulatory reform agenda Monday, telling a group of community bankers that he is committed to CRA upgrades, new flexibility in BSA compliance and other measures.

GSE reform a likely scratch from this year’s to-do list; banks’ difficulties in speaking emoji; reactions to Mick Mulvaney’s plans for the CFPB; and more.

Readers react to Mick Mulvaney’s proposal to restructure the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, opine on Community Reinvestment Act reform ideas, weigh in on emojis in digital banking and more.

Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., questioned Bank of America's decision to discontinue free online checking accounts used by many low-income consumers in light of the bank's recent profits and corporate tax cuts.

The San Francisco Fed chief, an economist, is seen as a complement to Fed chair Powell; the proposal would make it easier for banks to comply with the law.

The financial services industry and community reinvestment advocates both praised the Treasury Department’s recommendations for reforming Community Reinvestment Act enforcement.

The Treasury's recommendations come as federal bank regulators have indicated they will soon release a proposal to reform Community Reinvestment Act policy.

Financial Institutions, the parent of Five Star Bank, was hit with a "needs to improve" rating after a review of its activities from 2011 to 2013.

Regulators are working intently on a proposal to reform how they apply the Community Reinvestment Act after previous attempts to modernize CRA policy drew mixed reviews.

Howard Bancorp and Bryn Mawr Bank are trying different approaches to reach out to underserved markets they’ve entered via acquisitions. Creative in-house initiatives may take on added importance as regulators move to "dial back" Community Reinvestment Act rules.

In providing aid, banks can earn Community Reinvestment Act credit and burnish their reputation.

Two civil rights groups in Texas allege that Capital One's TV ads featuring black celebrities encourage minority customers to deposit money and use debit cards, while its branch closings in their neighborhoods cut them off from loans and other services.

Comptroller of the Currency Joseph Otting said reform of Community Reinvestment Act regulations is a "key element" of how regulators aim to recalibrate rules a decade after the financial crisis.

As regulators look to update the Community Reinvestment Act, they should better integrate online and mobile banking activity as part of exam performance.

Regulators said they were taking steps to recognize contributions to the recovery made by banks anywhere in the nation.