Law and regulation

A proposed settlement of a merchants’ lawsuit over credit card fees that may cost Visa Inc., MasterCard Inc. and banks as much as $7.25 billion is probably worthy of approval, a federal judge said.

The CFPB announced that it will soon be supervising large consumer debt collections firms.

Paul Whitmore was direct and blunt in his assessment of the state of payments in the U.S. when he spoke at this week's Chicago Payments Symposium at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago: "I've been sitting here for two days, wondering how did you get yourself into this mess?"

A state law that eased restrictions on credit card rates in Ohio influenced the move, the Columbus company said.

A lawsuit accusing Bank of America and Countrywide Home Loans of misrepresenting mortgages gets to the core of their disputes with the government-sponsored housing giants over mortgage putbacks.

Longtime banker Charlie Scharf seems like the safe choice to lead Visa. But for the world’s largest payments network, safe is usually smart.

Collection agencies, debt buyers and law firms with revenues exceeding $10 million per year will fall under the CFPB's supervision starting next year, the federal agency confirmed Wednesday.

Preeta Bansal, the former general counsel and senior policy advisor at the Office of Management and Budget, is joining the bank's London office as global general counsel for litigation and regulatory affairs.

A private-sector analysis of the implementation of the Dodd-Frank resolution facility outlines several tasks the FDIC needs to complete before it's ready for the next crisis.

Earnings at Flagstar Bancorp in Troy, Mich., fell 7% from a quarter earlier as credit and litigation costs offset a large gain from loan sales.

If the program ends, most TAG deposits held by community banks will quickly migrate to the biggest banks as investors still expect the federal government to protect all deposits held by these financial behemoths.

Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) will pay $42 million to settle a probe by Nevada's attorney general into its mortgage-purchase practices before the housing crisis.

Bank of America sold defective residential mortgage loans to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that later defaulted, the U.S. government said in a $1 billion fraud lawsuit against the bank.

An analysis of Senate rulings indicates voters who believe in strengthening customer protections should cast their ballots for Democrats, while voters who believe banks should not have to answer to a consumer regulator should choose Republicans.

The push to roll back banking regulation has gained unlikely supporters recently. From consumer advocates to Democratic stalwarts, pressure is mounting to rein in the red tape.

"A critical mass of angst and dissatisfaction with the Dodd-Frank Act and Basel III is opening the door to change," writes Barbara Rehm. If you want to read the brightest mind on the topic, check out Karen Shaw Petrou's assessments, she says.

The Consumer Financial Protectin Bureau will publish a final rule Wednesday to supervise firms with more than $10 million in annual receipts.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. has lifted a consent order against Metro Bank related to the bank's anti-money laundering and Bank Secrecy Act programs.

The flood of new regulation, demands for more capital, harsh enforcement and an unexplained three-year-old de facto moratorium on de novo charters lead one to believe Washington wants fewer community banks

Lending to companies that service the federal government have historically been safe bets, but that could change if Washington is forced to make drastic cuts early next year.