Law and regulation

The world now knows which 28 giant banks will be required to post extra capital. Much else about the Basel III regime remains uncertain.

County and state officials are turning up the heat on MERS, as recent lawsuits filed in Michigan, Florida, Delaware and Texas challenge the validity and accuracy of the mortgage industry-controlled loan registry.

In a speech to banking industry officials, Jim Freis noted that nonbanks will soon face similar anti-money laundering restrictions as banks.

A New Jersey lawyer charged with stealing $1 million from a client has been apprehended in Alabama after an apparent attempt to avoid prosecution.

Lawmakers are near a deal to increase the maximum size of mortgage loans that can be insured by the Federal Housing Administration, a crucial source of mortgages for first-time home buyers, congressional aides said Monday.

The political jousting over the structure and leadership of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau continues, but the real work of the agency and its professionals has begun. That work will ultimately determine, among other things, whether the CFPB will be a rules-based or enforcement-based agency.

Government-issued payment cards can be fraught with peril, provoking the ire of unemployed and disabled consumers and their advocates, who are increasingly sensitive to being charged bank fees of any kind.

Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown on Monday became the first Senate Republican to endorse the nomination of Richard Cordray to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

The outcome of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's 'Larger Participant' rule has the potential to level the playing field between the banking industry and an old rival: Wal-Mart.

The Justice Department began sending letters Monday to servicemembers who are entitled to $20 million in damages from Bank of America Corp. for alleged violations of the Servicemember Civil Relief Act.

More banks have sold problem assets to private-equity groups this year, while others unloaded their banks in hopes of unlocking the value in nonperforming assets. Some believe selling bad loans to nonbanks could shore up valuations by removing the challenges of regulatory oversight.

Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr., an aggressive prosecutor of money laundering cases, made a strong appeal Monday for information-sharing between banks and law enforcement.

Judge Jonathan Lippman, regulator Benjamin Lawsky and Attorney General Eric Schneiderman are standing up to an industry intent on forgetting that the foreclosure crisis affects real people, real lives and real families.

The Federal Trade Commission won a $29.8 million judgment against defendants behind a deceptive marketing operation known as Grant Connect.

Some of the biggest champions of the Volcker Rule have complained that the 300-page proposal implementing it is simply too long and complicated. That includes former Fed Chairman Paul Volcker himself, who first suggested the idea of a ban on banks' proprietary trading.

Federal Reserve Board Vice Chairman Janet Yellen said the central bank expects to release a package of rules, which had been expected in September, soon.

In a capitalist economy there is one market which is more important than any other — the market for capital. What can be more vital than the efficiency of the process by which the price of capital in all its various financial forms is determined — whether long or medium-term fixed-rate loans or equity?

Depending on how it rules, the high court's decision to hear a fair lending case could benefit banks facing stepped-up scrutiny from the Justice Department.

If you’re looking for lessons on risky business and recidivism, MF Global has them in spades.

We assumed the story on the front of Section C of the Journal was more important than the one inside. Dead wrong.