Industries

The Department of Housing and Urban Development issued a proposal Wednesday to codify recent changes to its reverse mortgage program and to provide additional protections for seniors, including a cap on annual interest rate increases.

The June 25 launch, which will provide lenders with much more information about a borrower's credit history, will mark the first widespread use of trended data in the mortgage industry.

The government-sponsored enterprises' risk-sharing deals are being hailed as an innovative approach for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to offload credit exposure to private markets. But their growing popularity is raising questions about how these transactions should be reported in financial statements.

The Consumer Mortgage Coalition is arguing that the bill has serious flaws by allowing private insurers to undercut pricing on federal flood insurance policies by offering high deductibles and exclusions to homeowners with mortgages guaranteed by the government-sponsored enterprises.

Loan growth at several Boston banks, including many former mutuals, is higher than the national average. Still, bankers are closely watching for any indication that a bubble is forming.

Going forward, Fannie Mae will be relying more on loan guarantee fee income from its single-family and multifamily businesses.

Shares in Bank of the Ozarks slid Wednesday after an investor known for shorting stocks warned about risk in the company's construction portfolio. The stock recovered some by the end of trading, and several analysts said the concerns are unfounded.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency announced Wednesday it had raised a cap on the amount of multifamily loans Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac can buy from lenders, boosting it to $35 billion effective immediately.

At least one banker has gone public with expectations that the OCC will force his institution to hold more capital. More could soon follow.

Industry groups are urging the Federal Housing Finance Agency to end the sweep of profits of the GSEs so that Fannie and Freddie can rebuild capital.

The House passed a bill Thursday that would authorize state insurance commissioners to approve flood insurance policies for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and other federally backed mortgages.

WASHINGTON — The Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco has selected Greg Seibly to be its new president and chief executive starting May 12. He will take over from Dean Schultz, who is retiring after 25 years at the helm of the bank.

The courts would not be getting involved in defining the reach of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau if the architects of the agency had instituted a commission to oversee it.

Freddie Mac has revised downward its economic forecast for the remainder of 2016 following a tepid first quarter, but still remains upbeat about the housing market.

Federal regulators unveiled a long-awaited proposal Thursday designed to target incentive-based pay arrangements for executives at banks and credit unions, the agencies' second attempt after their initial plan met fierce resistance.

Two St. Louis-area investors have been indicted on charges they defrauded the failed Excel Bank on real estate loans.

Signature Bank in New York reported record profits in the first quarter as strong loan, asset and deposit growth more than offset increased expenses and deterioration in its portfolio of taxi-medallion loans.

Several small and midsize banks generated large year-over-year loan growth despite a belief by some outsiders that a slowdown was looming. Bankers may have to spend coming months assuring investors that they can keep booking loans while adequately managing risk.

WASHINGTON — Michael Wilson officially assumed the titles of president and chief executive of the merged Federal Home Loan Bank of Des Moines on Monday, a little sooner than expected.

Senate Banking Committee Chairman Richard Shelby, R-Ala., is seeking input from the Government Accountability Office and the Congressional Budget Office on the future of policies dealing with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.