Law and regulation

On the one hand, Sen. Elizabeth Warren's potential elevation to vice president could give significant influence if Hillary Clinton wins the White House. But it would also remove a significant voice for reform from a key spot on the Senate Banking Committee.

U.S. prosecutors have abandoned their case against Angelo Mozilo, a leader in selling the risky subprime mortgages that fueled the financial crisis, after a two-year quest to bring a civil suit against him.

WASHINGTON — The Financial Stability Oversight Council fired another salvo late Thursday in an ongoing legal battle over its decision to designate MetLife as a systemically important financial institution.

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.

Richard Cordray, the director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, is the target of a new TV ad campaign that alleges he is courting potential funders for a run as governor of Ohio by enacting a plan that would benefit trial lawyers. The campaign appears to be the work of Lincoln Strategy Group, a political strategy firm in Phoenix with ties to Republicans.

Study of financial services offers grim outlook for gender parity, as Patti Husic and Katia Bouazza talk about where change really begins; Maria Vullo vows to forge her own identity as New York's banking watchdog (sans boots); and male CEOs talk about how they maintain work-life balance. Plus, the significance of women wearing pants ( … if not boots).

The answer may be no, according to federal regulators. Their new guidelines on mobile security include other surprises, too, such as specific requirements tied to geolocation, security tests and cross-site scripting.

The Securities and Exchange Commission is considering whether to require state and local governments to disclose bank loans and private placements, according to people familiar with the matter, reflecting bondholders' concerns about the fast-growing segment of municipal finance.

The prospect of banks and credit unions meeting small-dollar loan demand is at risk under the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's restrictive proposal.

New York senators approved Vullo Wednesday as the superintendent of the New York State Department of Financial Services, a year after the exit of the last permanent superintendent.

More than a third of likely voters backing Democrat Hillary Clinton in the latest Bloomberg Politics national poll say she should pick Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, a darling of the party's liberal wing, as her running mate.

House Republicans' plan to subject all federal regulators to the Congressional appropriations process is alarming industry observers, who argue it could hurt both banks and consumers.

Stonegate Bank in Florida has introduced a credit card that its customers can use in Cuba. In doing so, the $2.5 billion-asset bank, in Pompano Beach becomes first U.S. bank to make credit cards available for use in the Caribbean island nation.

WASHINGTON — Despite banker arguments that post-crisis financial reforms are damaging the health of the financial industry, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Martin Gruenberg sought Wednesday to paint a different picture, citing evidence that banks are doing well.

If banks don't weigh in on an appropriate privacy standard, they risk letting outside events spark onerous new regulations.

WASHINGTON — Congress may end up revisiting a long-fought battle over debit interchange fees after Rep. Randy Neugebauer, R-Texas, introduced legislation Tuesday that would eliminate current caps that were part of a contentious addition to the Dodd-Frank Act.

The OCC might also open up an outpost "where the tech firms are," the Comptroller of the Currency said Tuesday.

House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., unveiled a Republican agenda Tuesday aimed at jump-starting the economy which includes a number of financial reforms including revamping the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and limiting bank regulations.

Mortgage lenders, debt collectors and credit card companies have borne the brunt of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's public enforcement actions over the past four years, yet banks have paid the most in penalties and restitution, according to a new study released by an agency insider.

Fears about repurchase requests made by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac persisted beyond the crisis, but those fears don't match actual repurchase numbers.