Law and regulation

Green Tree's bad report card comes as regulators and lawmakers are scrutinizing nonbank servicers that have aggressively purchased mortgage servicing rights from banks.

By strengthening direct consumer oversight, Bitcoin may shift consumer protection from law and regulation to reputation and trust, and even to mathematical proof of good service.

Negotiations between industry, consumer groups and universities on U.S. rules for banking services aimed at college students have stalled over a Department of Education proposal to ban most account fees.

Student loan company Sallie Mae has agreed to pay approximately $97 million to settle accusations by the Justice Department that it overcharged certain members of the military and by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. that it misled consumers about late fees.

Discover's Pulse network and MasterCard have agreed to allow card-issuing banks using both networks to use MasterCard's technology to route EMV debit card transactions.

The government-sponsored enterprises just went a long way toward encouraging lenders to make more loans to borrowers with lower credit scores.

In his account of the financial crisis, former Treasury Secretary and New York Fed President Tim Geithner offers a full-throated defense of his fight to bail out Washington Mutual's bondholders and protect Citigroup's bid to take over Wachovia.

The Federal Housing Administration gave more details Tuesday about a program to reward borrowers who get counseling and a quality assurance initiative meant to ease lenders' fears about accommodating riskier borrowers.

In a wide-ranging speech on Tuesday, new FHFA Director Mel Watt said he would not weigh in on the housing finance reform debate percolating in Congress, while also detailing what changes he plans to make at the agency, including encouraging more access to credit.

U.S. authorities are seeking more than $3.5 billion from BNP Paribas SA to resolve federal and state investigations into the lender's dealings with sanctioned countries including Sudan and Iran, according to people familiar with the matter.

WASHINGTON — A House subcommittee announced Tuesday that it has scheduled a meeting on May 21 to hear from three officials at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau who were recently subpoenaed to testify on allegations of employee discrimination and retaliation at the agency.

Advocates of mandatory arbitration say that it is cheaper than litigation and just as fair to consumers. Both claims are suspect.

Connecticut's top banking regulator on Monday warned investors about the dangers of Bitcoin.

Connecticut's top banking regulator on Monday warned investors about the dangers of bitcoin.

Freddie Mac, which along with Fannie Mae has forced home lenders to buy back tens of billions of dollars of flawed mortgages, said the companies are loosening rules that made banks more cautious about extending credit.

The Senate Banking Committee will renew its markup of legislation to overhaul the housing finance system on Thursday, after abruptly postponing the deliberations late last month.

Between Operation Choke Point and anti-laundering regulations, financial institutions are going to new lengths to avoid anything even remotely associated with illegality — raising questions of fairness, slippery slopes and self-preservation.

Lenders and loan officers are increasingly using social media to scout for customers, raising a host of compliance concerns, from preventing unauthorized use of brands to monitoring employee communications.

Though Vice Chairman Thomas Hoenig and board member Jeremiah Norton must defer to Chairman Martin Gruenberg on setting the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s agenda, the two directors have still found ways to affect policy, particularly on new capital rules for the biggest banks.

Mutual funds pose no threat to the stability of the financial system. Yet regulators appear determined to designate them as systemically important financial institutions-a move that could hurt millions of Americans who depend on the funds as retirement savings vehicles.