Law and regulation

Banks that do business with the marijuana industry should follow guidance from the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network in order to navigate the conflict between state and federal laws, a top-ranking official from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency said Thursday.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac updated their representation and warranties frameworks in a move designed to encourage mortgage lenders to ease credit restrictions by limiting repurchase requirements.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued a proposal Thursday that would institute new foreclosure protections for consumers after the agency found its previous mortgage rules didn't go far enough.

WASHINGTON — The Financial Stability Oversight Council needs a more formal system for monitoring its process for designating nonbanks as "systemically important," a watchdog said Thursday.

The Federal Reserve announced two separate reviews Thursday to ensure that supervision of the largest banks is being handled correctly.

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray highlighted the role of banks and other payment system operators to ensure proper treatment of customers using transaction networks.

The House Financial Services Committee has appointed five subcommittee chairs for the next Congress.

The National Credit Union Administration's three-member board split along party lines on Thursday in its approval of a $279.5 million operating budget for next year.

Federal Reserve Board Gov. Daniel Tarullo said the agency wants to enforce its liquidity rules in such a way as to ensure that accumulated capital can be deployed in times of economic stress.

A prominent labor group is pressing big banks and investment companies about their payment practices for executives who leave for government service.

The overly complex Dodd-Frank Act came about because policymakers failed to tie regulation and regulatory structure together effectively. The next step in financial reform should be to simplify — and perhaps consolidate — regulatory processes.

Regulators are threatening more action to force improvements in the behavior of bank employees, but executives are shooting back that the task is easier said than done and that change has to come from inside and not through supervisory orders.

A government tool for unloading failed bank assets and minimizing FDIC losses may be used as a vehicle to publicly subsidize private gains in the proposed merger between CIT Group and OneWest Bank.

The Independent Community Bankers of America is taking issue with the White House's selection of investment banker Antonio Weiss to become Treasury undersecretary of domestic finance, joining a growing list of those criticizing the nomination.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said DriveTime, which also has a lending unit, harassed delinquent borrowers and reported incorrect credit data.

A Senate report released Thursday reveals new details about the role certain banks played in the physical commodities markets, specifics that lawmakers say supports the Federal Reserve Board's plans to restrict bank participation in that area.

Only eleven months after cheering Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Melvin Watt's confirmation, Senate Democrats are fed up with the pace of reforms at the agency.

House Republicans are hoping to force the Federal Reserve Board to be more open about its monetary policy decisions and strip away some of its new authorities added by the Dodd-Frank Act, according to Rep. Patrick McHenry, the House's chief deputy whip.

Wells Fargo announced Wednesday that former Federal Reserve Board Gov. Elizabeth “Betsy” Duke is joining its board of directors.

WASHINGTON — The top Republican and Democratic spots on the House Financial Services Committee will remain unchanged in the new Congress.