Law and regulation

Mortgage servicers have failed to make significant investments in technology and compliance systems, resulting in substantial harm to consumers, according to a report issued Wednesday by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

WASHINGTON — Marijuana businesses and banks looking to open their doors to the potentially lucrative clients suffered a blow Wednesday after House Republicans blocked an amendment that would have prevented federal regulators from pursuing enforcement actions against banks dealing with the businesses in states with legalized pot.

WASHINGTON — Industry and consumer groups are calling on the Federal Housing Finance Agency to reduce the loan fees that homebuyers have to pay on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac guaranteed mortgage loans.

Federal Reserve Board Chair Janet Yellen signaled Wednesday that the central bank could support a House Republican effort to reduce banks' regulatory burden in return for institutions holding higher capital, but said such a deal should only be open to small banks.

WASHINGTON — The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has created a new position tasked with developing compliance protocols and enforcing bank supervision policies.

The Federal Reserve Board's top two leaders on Wednesday defended the authority for resolving large company failures against criticism that the policy is a continuation of "too big to fail."

Michael Stegmanm President Obama's former point man on housing-finance reform, is taking a job with a think tank that has sought to play a major role in shaping rules for a world without mortgage guarantors Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac — at least in their current form.

Evidence that regulators consider institution size when evaluating accounting compliance should encourage banks worried about the new loan-loss reserving standard.

Financial innovation, including distributed ledger technology and marketplace lending, has emerged as a new source of risk to the U.S. financial system, according to a report issued Tuesday by the Financial Stability Oversight Council.

Resolution plans put in place following the financial crisis have made big banks expert at contingency planning. Nonetheless, bankers here are keeping their fingers crossed that Britain will remain in the European Union.