Law and regulation

The impact of the so-called Durbin Amendment on small financial institutions was a hot topic Wednesday at a credit-union conference in Washington.

John Walsh, the acting Comptroller of the Currency, used an appearance at the American Bankers Association's governmental summit to state the case against creating an alternative appeals process.

The testing process penalizes banks if their capital estimates veer from the Federal Reserve's, but the central bank has failed to show that its estimates are any better.

The Federal Trade Commission this week summarized its recent work on debt collection issues in a letter.

The American Bankers Association told attendees at its Government Relations Summit that now is not the time to “play footsie” with lawmakers and regulators.

Stung by the recent skimming scandals that rocked banks in Singapore, the country’s apex monetary authority says it is working with the financial institutions to safeguard their systems and operating capability.

In a time of crisis, banks are challenged to communicate to irate and frustrated customers over Twitter, Facebook and blogs. And in most cases, the banks don't win.

Is it inevitable? Will community banks as we know them cease to exist over the next 10 years, with large, regional and multi-state banks along with credit unions left to fill the gap?

Senate Democrats Tuesday failed in an attempt to scale back a bill meant to ease the path for small banks to raise new capital.

Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner attempted to reassure Republican lawmakers who worry that tough new regulations in this country will put U.S. banks at a disadvantage and that taxpayers will need to bail out struggling European nations.

The Federal Reserve Board has terminated a written agreement with Mid America Bank and Trust Co. in Dixon, Mo.

As consumer panel questions Obama administration's choices for FDIC, Fed and other agencies, Sen. Richard Shelby says nominees will be chosen "on their merits."

Trading revenues at commercial banks fell sharply in the fourth quarter as concerns about sovereign debt and economic uncertainty in Europe kept many banks and their clients on the sidelines.

If former FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair was still a banking regulator, there might have been a lot more banks "failing" the stress tests.

New proposal would adjust definitions in the agency's premiums formula that banks had said was too burdensome. An FDIC board member said the plan may still be too complicated.

The current U.S. tax code represents decades of political manipulation rather than any grand design, and can certainly be improved upon, but only a tax neutral pro-growth tax reform can prevent the deficit from spiraling out of control. Hence tax reform should favor saving over consumption and productive work over leisure, but otherwise be neutral, allowing capital and labor to flow to their most productive use.

Wells Fargo is already contacting borrowers who might be eligible for a principal reduction as required under the $25 billion robo-signing settlement with state and federal law enforcement agencies.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. proposed Tuesday changing the formula it uses to calculate quarterly assessment fees on banks, responding to complaints from banks that a rule put in place last year was unworkable.

Mortgage bondholders are crying foul — and lining up their lawyers — over losses they would incur if servicers write down investors' holdings.

Forget the four-letter dirty words. It’s the 10-letter one – regulation – that will really offend bankers.