KYC

Even without a change in federal law, banks can manage the risks associated with the marijuana business, argues a former federal bank examiner who now works in the cannabis industry.

Ramamurthi has transformed a 123-year-old institution with one branch serving a dusty Kansas town into a seedbed for disruptive financial technology — not to mention a wildly profitable generator of fee income.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's payday loan proposal threatens many money services businesses on the front lines of stopping money-laundering and terrorist financing.

A startup backed by philanthropist Pierre Omidyar has emerged from stealth mode with technology that promises to provide consistent value and a degree of privacy to electronic money.

The Dec. 2 mass shooting has shone a light on the sector's vulnerability to borrowers who, exploiting the absence of face-to-face contact on the Internet, lie on their loan applications.

Services are cropping up that help banks analyze bitcoin transactions for signs of criminal behavior such as money laundering. But such services come with their own risks.

The Bank for International Settlements acknowledges that people may have legitimate reasons to prefer an anonymous payment system.

Recent U.S. and U.K. assessments of anti-money-laundering and efforts to combat terrorism financing show how the two countries have structured respective approaches to pinpointing key risks.

A lack of access to financial services, particularly the inability to transfer funds overseas, can prevent lifesaving work from being carried out and has touched the refugee crisis in Europe, where many aid groups are delivering assistance.

The number of startup companies opting out of the State of New York — more than a dozen — since the financial services department's BitLicense regulation was finalized is troublesome.

There is a time, a place and a customer base for pseudonymous cryptocurrency. For regulated financial institutions, other types of shared ledgers — those whose validators are legally accountable for certain terms of service — may provide unique utility.

Led by a team of financial services and regulatory veterans and young techies, Privacy.com represents the first mainstream attempt to build a business explicitly around transactional privacy in the era of Edward Snowden and Ashley Madison.

Even if Operation Choke Point officially ended, U.S. regulators have continued to apply the policy of threatening investigations and ruinous fines against banks that service "high-risk" customers in disfavored industries.

To identify fintech startups deserving of special recognition this year as part of the FinTech Forward program, a team of American Banker editors, BAI staff and industry members debated the merits of self-nominees and companies we know.

Swift CEO Gottfried Leibbrandt talks about how the global messaging network is looking to stay relevant to its bank members; the potential and limitations of blockchain technology; and his views on the startups looking to disrupt banking.

The digital currency industry reacted warily to a model framework for regulating such firms released Tuesday by the Conference of State Bank Supervisors, arguing the language is too vague and treats digital assets like normal money.

Trunomi, a startup that aims to simplify account sign-ups and know-your-customer compliance for banks, has raised $3 million.

Old-fashioned banks and neobanks are both finding the battle for acquiring customers to be treacherous. So BankMobile, a mobile-first banking service, has launched an innovation lab-like division seeking new tech that could attract thousands of new customers per month.

Before it dissolves in late September, a bipartisan House task force should take a broader look at de-risking, changing technologies, cybersecurity and the private sector's role in deterring terrorism financing.

Four Oaks Bank & Trust in Four Oaks, N.C., said its May 2011 enforcement action has been replaced with a more lenient agreement that requires it to address governance issues and other matters.