Law and regulation

Bank of New York Mellon will pay a $30 million penalty to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in a settlement related to the bank's pricing of foreign-exchange transitions.

First NBC Bank Holding in New Orleans, which delayed the release of its 2015 annual report earlier this year, said it has submitted a plan to Nasdaq to get back on schedule with its filing of financial statements.

The Federal Reserve Board is getting an earful from critics within and without the financial industry over its proposal to limit banks' credit exposures to a single entity.

WASHINGTON — Ripple Labs obtained a virtual currency license from the New York State Department of Financial Services on Monday, making it the fourth company with a BitLicense.

Even if the lower-court decision against the Financial Stability Oversight Council is upheld, there remains a compelling case to reform how the council designates large nonbank firms.

WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve and Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. announced Friday that 84 foreign banks with limited U.S. operations will be able to file more condensed resolution plans, decreasing the administrative burden and cost.

WASHINGTON — A House committee probing the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s cybersecurity practices has accused the agency of accessing internal documents from the FDIC's inspector general.

Fintech companies are asking a federal regulator to create a specialized charter that would allow them to comply with federal rules instead of facing a state-by-state licensing framework.

The Bank of England is among the central banks exploring possible uses of blockchain technology. In a recent speech, a BOE official noted how it would open access to central banks beyond commercial banks. "Everyone – including individuals – would be able to hold such balances," he said.

A recent op-ed warning of the risks to participation holders in bank failures missed several important points about today's loan market.

American Banker readers share their views on the most pressing banking topics of the week. Comments are excerpted from reader response sections of AmericanBanker.com articles and our social media platforms.

WASHINGTON — The House Appropriations Committee approved a bill Thursday that would subject the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to the appropriations process, among other things.

The federal agency expressed skepticism about industry-developed standards Thursday, suggesting that there is currently no way to enforce the rules or punish bad actors.

The clock is ticking to amend Dodd-Frank Act regulations before consumers in rural communities run out of borrowing options, community bankers from Kansas and Oklahoma told a House panel on Thursday.

Bankers are challenging the cost of a contentious Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. plan that would require banks to regularly update their insured deposit data, arguing it is much more expensive than the agency estimated.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has given community banks and other small companies more flexibility to issue private stock, but even more flexibility should be granted to fulfill congressional intent.

Regulators need to start paying attention to "denial-of-system" attacks as one of the triggers that could bring down a systemically important institution.

Fearing that housing finance reform has fallen off the congressional priority list, bank and housing trade groups sent a letter to Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Mel Watt on Wednesday to draw attention to the issue.

Lenders are questioning the legal justification for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's putting a 36% annual percentage rate threshold in its payday proposal, claiming loans made at that rate are unprofitable. That figure has been the subject of intense debate in the past decade.

China has officially opened its doors to payment companies from beyond its borders, this week unveiling the formal rules for foreign companies applying for bank-clearing privileges.