CRA

Judge again throws out Leandra English’s attempt to take over agency; planned revamp may ease banks’ lending requirements to the poor.

The bank says it received an “outstanding” rating on its most recent Community Reinvestment Act examination. Its previous rating, a “needs to improve,” not only was bad publicity but restricted its ability to buy banks.

State and federal regulators finally approved the Mississippi bank’s acquisitions of Ouachita Bancshares and Central Community after anti-laundering and CRA matters were resolved. BancorpSouth’s CEO says he may pursue more deals.

Comptroller of the Currency Joseph Otting said in a press conference Wednesday morning that there is a place in the banking world for some kind of fintech charter, though the exact parameters of such a charter are still unclear and have to be worked out.

The Silicon Valley payment processor is firing back at critics who say its bid for a bank charter would open the door to similar gambits by tech giants. Community activists, meanwhile, seem to be coming around to the idea of Square opening a bank.

Reform of the Community Reinvestment Act should seek to establish a minimum standard for the volume of CRA activities a bank must complete in its assessment area.

Clearinghouse CDFI will use funds from the $2 million investment to support affordable-housing and economic development projects in communities and Native American reservations in California, Nevada and Arizona.

Rather than pull up stakes and leave two low-income Mississippi towns at the mercy of payday lenders, Regions Bank donated the branches to a local credit union and kicked in another $500,000 for operating costs.

The company, which recently bought Sabadell United in Miami, is pledging to make billions of dollars in mortgages and small business loans in low- and moderate-income communities.

The Tupelo, Miss., company has recouped its “satisfactory” community reinvestment rating, removing a regulatory obstacle to two pending acquisitions.

The Ohio company's CRA rating took a hit after it inadvertently overcharged some customers.

The Fed's order noted that Sterling had clarified errors in its Community Reinvestment Act data before receiving a "satisfactory" rating from the OCC.

It is the largest equity investment that Clearinghouse CDFI has received in its two-decade history.

Contrary to the view of some, technology has not rendered the Community Reinvestment Act obsolete. But everyone seems to agree that it should be reformed.

The prospect of a lower corporate rate resulting from looming tax reform discussions may be a blessing for the industry, but it could be bittersweet for one particular group of bankers.

Social Finance’s application for an industrial loan charter has not only drawn opposition from a coalition of incumbent banks and community activists, it also serves as a microcosm of several perennial debates in financial services policy.

The marketplace lender's application for an industrial bank charter is under fire from small banks and progressives, who say it could violate the barrier between banking and commerce and shut out middle-class and lower-income consumers.

Readers slam credit unions’ ever-inclusive membership criteria, weigh in on the OCC’s proposed fintech charter, encourage a rewrite of the CRA, and more.

Tucked away in the Treasury Department’s regulatory reform report released last month was a nascent effort to reform the way regulators implement the Community Reinvestment Act.

ESSA Bank & Trust has successfully worked with a federal program that helps former prisoners in some eastern Pennsylvania towns get back into society, and it plans to expand the program to the Philadelphia market.