Mortgages

While the $1.9 billion of bonds are not guaranteed by the government, most of the underlying loans could have been sold to Fannie and Freddie, and the transaction accomplishes the same thing as the GSEs' risk-transfer deals.

The chairmen of the House and Senate banking committees appear to agree that banks that hold higher capital should get a significant break on other regulatory requirements. But the odds of enacting a bill this year remain long.

House Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling signaled an aggressive assault on the Dodd-Frank Act on Tuesday, outlining a bill that would allow banks to be released from some of the 2010 reform law's regulations and Basel III requirements if they hold sufficient capital.

Three-fourths of House lawmakers signed a bipartisan letter that calls on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to take more steps to carve out community banks and credit unions from onerous regulations. But will it make a difference?

Citigroup executives involved in the issuance of residential mortgage-backed securities at the center of the 2008 financial crisis will not be facing criminal charges for selling toxic bonds, U.S. authorities have determined.

HarborOne Bank, a mutually owned co-operative bank in Brockton, Mass., plans to sell shares to the public.

A federal judge has allowed to proceed a lawsuit in which a Belgian investor blames Bank of New York Mellon for about $1.1 billion of losses related to its role as trustee for residential mortgage securities.

Market volatility and new regulatory burdens are thinning the ranks of commercial mortgage lenders that underwrite loans for securitizations. Activity is slowing down as a result, and it is unclear if banks and insurers will fill the void, especially outside the largest cities.

Contrary to claims of anticompetitive practices, manufactured housing industry leaders want to increase the number of lenders offering financing.

WASHINGTON — The House Financial Services Committee approved a bill this week that would increase the mobility of mortgage originators who take a new job across state lines or move from a federally regulated bank to a nonbank.