Overdrafts

A pair of Congressional Review Act resolutions directed at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's overdraft and larger participant rules are expected to make it to President Donald Trump's desk.

Consumer advocates MyPath and the Mississippi Center for Justice have been allowed to intervene in a banking industry lawsuit challenging the CFPB's $5 overdraft fee cap for large financial institutions after the bureau declined to defend the rule.

The heads of both the House and Senate banking committees introduced a Congressional Review Act resolution to undo the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's overdraft rule, a measure that only needs a simple majority in both chambers to pass.

The House Financial Services Committee released a draft resolution under the Congressional Review Act to cancel the Consumer Financial Protections Bureau's rule limiting bank overdrafts to $5 in most cases.

The Michigan-based institution lowered overdraft and nonsufficient fund fees to 99 cents amid a torrent of regulatory rulemaking and action related to overdraft.

The New York Department of Financial Services has proposed several changes to overdraft fees including banning banks from charging more than three overdraft or nonsufficient funds fees per consumer per day.

While the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau seeks to cap overdraft fees, banks and credit unions are fighting the effort. Nuances that don't fit either side's narrative can get lost in the rhetoric.

Bank trade groups filed a motion for a preliminary injunction to stop the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's $5 overdraft fee rule from going into effect late next year.

The populist strain that has long animated the left wing of the Democratic party seems to have migrated to the Republican center, benefiting President-elect Donald Trump in this year's election. We're about to find out whether right-wing populism is as earnest as its left-wing predecessor.

There are many ways for the incoming administration to overturn the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's final rule slashing overdraft late fees to $5. But the politics of nullifying the rule is a challenge to an administration that promised lower prices.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued a final rule that would allow banks to either charge $5 for overdraft fees. Alternatively they can charge a courtesy fee to cover costs, or charge higher fees but send annual percentage rate disclosures to the consumer. Bank trade groups sued the bureau to stop the rule.

The availability and visibility of Bank On-certified accounts, which aim to expand banking access, is contributing to a decrease in the percentage of U.S. households that are unbanked, according to bankers and government officials.

The Vienna, Virginia-based credit union will pay tens of millions of dollars in penalties over what the agency said was "junk fees" charged to Navy Federal's customers.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued guidance reminding banks that they must be able to prove that consumers have opted in to overdraft services in order to charge overdraft fees.

Currently sitting at 2,500, the in-store branch count appears fated to continue dropping, as customers opt for digital channels and banks shy away from models that emphasize overdraft.

While banks with less than $10 billion of total assets would not be forced to comply with the $14 cap, many would adopt it or make other changes to stay competitive with larger banks, survey finds.

National Credit Union Administration Chair Todd Harper Tuesday revealed plans to mandate separate reporting of overdraft and nonsufficient funds fees for credit unions with over $1 billion in assets, which he said would enhance equity and transparency in fee structures.

Charging a nonsufficient funds fee on a debit, ATM or peer-to-peer payment that gets declined immediately would be considered "abusive" under a proposed rule from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Small banks appeared to notch a big win with the exemption from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's overdraft proposal. But some experts are questioning the CFPB's rationale, given research that shows small banks' overreliance on overdraft revenue.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau plans to release a proposal that would set maximum overdraft fees at $14 for the largest banks in an overhaul of how overdraft fees are calculated and charged.