Law and regulation

The Federal Housing Finance Agency is planning to issue a final rule in the next 12 months to require Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to better serve underserved markets, including manufactured housing, the agency said Thursday.

Recommended reforms released by the Department of Education for servicers and private student lenders are part of intensifying federal efforts to help struggling borrowers.

JPMorgan Chase has paid off $3.56 billion of the $4 billion it owes in consumer relief credit as part of a 2013 settlement over marred mortgage-backed securities issued before the crisis.

Community West Bancshares in Goleta, Calif., has received regulatory approval to exit the Troubled Asset Relief Program.

A handful of moderate Democrats are supporting a controversial bill to restructure the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and are expected to help the House Financial Services Committee approve the legislation.

In comments to the Treasury Department, traditional financial institutions are calling for more oversight of an industry that is fast becoming a big competitive threat.

WASHINGTON — Senate Banking Committee Chairman Richard Shelby sent a letter to regulators this week raising concerns about the role of the Financial Stability Board in designating large banks as systemically risky and whether the international council has undue influence on U.S. policy.

Community banks merit more regulatory relief, particularly those that hold mortgage originations. That was a key message from James Bullard, St. Louis Fed president, during a community banking conference in St. Louis hosted by the Federal Reserve Board and the Conference of State Bank Supervisors.

Bankers need to show they are in control of relationships with outside vendors, must be ready to respond to M&A-related protests and should be as concerned about economic growth as interest rates, according to the St. Louis Fed's supervisory chief.

The Federal Reserve Board has approved the merger of M&T Bank in Buffalo, N.Y., and Hudson City Bancorp in Paramus, N.J., after more than three years of delay. The approval came on the day the regulator had set as a deadline to announce its verdict on the deal.