Durbin Amendment

American Banker readers share their views on the most pressing banking topics of the week. Comments are excerpted from reader response sections of AmericanBanker.com articles and our social media platforms.

Financial institutions see their best chance to repeal interchange debit fee caps, but merchants are confident they can prevent Congress from taking up the issue again.

Pinnacle Financial wanted to be in high-growth markets. BNC Bancorp saw more regulatory burden looming and limited opportunities to sell itself. Those factors spurred what is currently the year's second-biggest bank deal.

The tiny Flagship Bank has made an unusual bet in agreeing to pay 20 times current capital to buy BankMobile, but the same Durbin amendment that prompted Customers Bancorp to sell the unit also made Flagship the ideal buyer.

It's hard enough lobbying for big changes on Capitol Hill, but sometimes it only gets harder when it comes time to actually implement them.

Although the news was mostly positive, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s Quarterly Banking Profile revealed potential warning signs for financial institutions.

Lost in the battle between banks and retailers — which is being fought with renewed vigor in the early days of the Trump administration — is any consideration of how caps on interchange fees have affected consumer spending patterns.

In an exclusive American Banker poll, bankers see President Trump as a positive force for the financial services industry and are optimistic his administration can deliver on CFPB reform and simpler capital rules.

Retailers are prepared to go to the mat to defend the Durbin Amendment on swipe fees; tech firms who sought to displace big banks now sell their wares to them.

Attendees at an American Bankers Association conference believe a massive overhaul of banking regulations is unlikely.