Leveraged loans

From scams to watch out for to the role banks play in an SBA virus loan program, news about the pandemic's impact was everywhere. Also: As State Farm bows out, U.S. Bank seizes an expansion opportunity; CFPB sues Fifth Third for allegedly opening phony accounts; and more from this week's most-read stories.

Banks may be protected from a direct hit, but they have invested in vehicles that include such loans, potentially exposing them to defaults.

Wells Fargo appears to be outpacing its rivals in the API race; CFPB's unexpected showdown with Citizens; Varo gets vital FDIC OK for bank charter; and more from this week's most-read stories.

Regulators are alarmed about banks' rising exposure to high-risk corporate credits and want more data on how they would perform in a recession.

Certain loan segments are showing signs of deterioration, but consumer lending and digital banking are bright spots. Meanwhile, bankers are eyeing opportunities to improve efficiency, add scale and take advantage of M&A disruption. Here's what to expect from smaller regionals in the year ahead.

The board- and management-level handing of CRE concentration was the chief concern of FDIC examiners, making up more than 56% of all the supervisory recommendations regulators made in the two-year period.

The bank is the first U.S. one approved for a majority-owned securities unit in China; the FSB said banks must get serious about replacing the benchmark.

Barely noticed in a corner of the financial markets, leveraged loans originally worth about $40 billion are staging their own private meltdown.

Members of the House Financial Services Committee cited leveraged lending, cybersecurity and the switch to a new interest rate benchmark among potential systemic risks that keep them up at night.

By turning to investors outside traditional banking, private-equity firms are finding it easier than ever to get loans to finance their buyouts of corporations that are nowhere close to being profitable.

Fresh data from the Fed, FDIC and Bank of England shows that, directly or indirectly, banks are taking on more leveraged loans. But whether this puts their loan and securities portfolios at risk remains open for debate.

The Democratic presidential candidate argued in a blog post that the U.S. could avoid a recession by canceling most student debt and authorizing regulators to more aggressively monitor leveraged lending.

The U.S. lacks mechanisms authorized in other countries to flag nonbank risks, Eric Rosengren says.

Citi’s chief lending officer to take over HSBC’s U.S. business; Pittsburgh banks brace for incursion of industry heavyweights; borrowing by nonbank leveraged lenders is growing (maybe too much); and more from this week’s most-read stories.

Banks may be exposed to a shakeout in the $1.3 trillion leveraged-loan market even though they mostly own the safest portions of debt, according to the Bank for International Settlements.

Lending to companies with heavy debt loads is a growing business — one that many fear could lead to the next financial crisis.

Google explored the OCC's fintech charter, then walked away; the biggest changes in digital banking could be just ahead; 'Truist' rebrand prompts lawsuit by N.C. credit union; and more from this week's most-read stories.

As Facebook's Libra takes shape, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell says he is "not too concerned" about the impact on central banks.

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell says the agency is closely monitoring leveraged lending risks, but suggests further regulations on banks aren’t warranted.

Readers weigh potential risks in the leveraged loans market, debate Herb Sandler's legacy, consider the role the Fed should play in real-time payments and more.