ILCs

Readers consider Square's bid to become an industrial loan company, weigh the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s oversight of brokered deposits and debate reforms to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

By applying to become an industrial loan company, the fintech would be able to use insured deposit accounts as a cheap source of funding without having to comply with the tough rules banks face.

Readers weigh in on Democrats' call for more scrutiny of the BB&T-SunTrust merger, changes to the CFPB's payday lending rule, criticism of Square's ILC application and more.

By applying to become an industrial loan company, the fintech would be able to use insured deposit accounts as a cheap source of funding without having to comply with the tough rules banks face.

More than three dozen organizations are asking the FDIC to reject Square’s pending application to become an industrial loan company, according to a letter filed Tuesday.

The vast majority of comment letters to the FDIC support the fintech’s banking venture, in stark contrast to the public outcry over the pre-crisis ILC bids by large retailers.

As suspense builds over which firm will be the first to seek the special-purpose charter, a side discussion has emerged over which financial services sector has the most to gain — or lose — from the new option.

The industrial loan company charter is getting more attention as doubts grow about a new federal license for fintechs.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has gotten the ball rolling for financial technology firms trying to operate a national platform, but the FDIC and Federal Reserve should act to remove other policy roadblocks.

The payments processor was among numerous firms earlier this year to withdraw an ILC charter application over questions about its plan.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has gotten the ball rolling for financial technology firms trying to operate a national platform, but the FDIC and Federal Reserve should act to remove other policy roadblocks.

Jelena McWilliams has signaled a thaw in the agency’s approach to industrial loan companies, but she said tech firms and other nonbanks seeking charters should face the same level of regulatory scrutiny as more traditional banks.

Applications this year are more than double the 2017 mark and the most since 2009. But with some fintechs withdrawing their bids, observers are urging caution.

The student loan servicer called the move a "temporary step back" in what it had expected to be a lengthy process.

The industry group wants the FDIC to reject an ILC request from student lender Nelnet and impose a two-year ban on future applications.

Online lenders and other firms await news from OCC and Treasury on the future of their supervision, even as they absorb the news that Square had to temporarily pull its industry loan company application.

One firm's inability to access bank data shows how fragile fintechs can be; payments processor Square quietly withdraws bank application; turnover of chief risk officers is on the rise; and more from this week's most-read stories.

The payments processor has pulled its submission to the FDIC to become a depository bank but says it plans to make a second attempt soon.

Nelnet’s planned bank would be an online enterprise focused on gathering deposits and making private student loans.

How the big banks fared in the Fed's latest round of stress testing; what's on new FDIC chair Jelena McWilliams' plate; why banks' biggest risk factor may be employees who don't speak up; and more from this week's most-read stories.