Economy

Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Mel Watt just made one of the biggest policy decisions of his 14-month tenure — but so far it has hardly caused a ripple on Capitol Hill.

Jeffrey Robinson, author of the acerbic "BitCon," explains how he squares his admiration for blockchain technology with his contempt for the Bitcoin currency and community in the final part of a conversation with American Banker's Marc Hochstein.

The National Pawnbrokers Association argues that its members have been unfairly swept up in the Justice Department initiative known as Operation Choke Point. But banks say Choke Point's not to blame: they're closing the accounts of cash-intensive businesses in order to ensure compliance with anti-money-laundering rules.

Golden State regulators want to bar Internet lenders from linking electronically to borrowers' bank accounts and instead require them to accept paper checks as repayment. The proposal is a technological step backward, and it could ultimately force many online lenders to pull out of the nation's largest state.

Banks and public interest groups are squaring off on whether the Federal Reserve Board should extend its proposed capital surcharge on the largest and most complex U.S. banks to be included in the agency's annual stress test analyses.

Former Federal Reserve Board Chairman Paul Volcker proposed a massive shake-up of the U.S. financial regulatory system on Monday that would consolidate oversight into three super regulators.

Hillary Clinton said Friday she had tapped Gary Gensler, the former chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, as the chief financial officer of her 2016 presidential campaign, a move that will likely bolster her credibility as a hawk on Wall Street regulation.

The high-flying sector is primed for a correction, industry leaders said this week. Declining credit standards are one of the top concerns.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren isn't running for president, but her financial reform proposals are designed to help shape the 2016 race, including Hillary Clinton's positions.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., delivered a sweeping speech Wednesday aimed at what she's calling "the unfinished business of financial reform."

The banking industry as a whole will survive startups. But many individual banks will fail to make the changes necessary to stay relevant in a rapidly changing market.

The San Francisco bank has produced enough growth in mortgages, C&I and other areas and made other moves to offset low rates. It is a hopeful example for mortgage-heavy banks and other lenders battling tight margins.

Still reeling from underwriting guidelines that went into effect last year, some small lenders are worried that a new mortgage disclosure regime might be the thing that pushes them over the edge.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau filed a lawsuit Tuesday against the owner of several tax-preparation outlets that allegedly steered low-income clients into expensive loans against their anticipated refunds.

Marketplace lenders are aggressively marketing their loans as a way to refinance expensive credit card debt. And with more affordable interest rates and faster loan application processes, there's reason to believe that firms like Lending Club and SoFi will beat out banks.

Prosper Marketplace, the second-largest consumer finance marketplace lender by origination volume, and OnDeck Capital, a direct online lender to small businesses, have agreed to partner on customer referrals.

General Electric's plan to sell most of its financing arm has been hailed as a sign that financial reform is successfully persuading "too big to fail" firms to break up. But the end of GE Capital just means that the conglomerates left standing are even more homogeneous and risk-prone.

Experts from the banking, retail and technology sectors gathered last week for SourceMedia's annual Card Forum and Expo, sharing their predictions for the payments industry's next step. Some were involved in Apple Pay from day one; others are looking past it to the next big thing.

A recap of the informed opinions (and the discussions they generated) on BankThink this week, including thoughts on regulatory complexity, Jamie Dimon's defense of the megabank model, and how vulnerable banks really are to tech startups.

Two House Financial Services subcommittee chairmen are urging the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to delay enforcement of a new disclosure regime due to take effect this summer until Jan. 1.