Politics

A divided Washington needs to come together on an issue of importance to all Americans: improving access to cutting-edge consumer financial services products.

North Carolina Republican Patrick McHenry — who's in line to lead the House Financial Services Committee after the GOP won control of the chamber in the midterm elections — has called for the Fed to stay focused on controlling inflation. Democrats, who retained the Senate, have begun to voice concerns that higher borrowing costs will hurt jobs and potentially cause a recession.

Republican control of the U.S. House of Representatives will help advance financial services firms' priorities, with a wish list that includes curbing ambitious proposals by a top markets regulator and diminishing the clout of a popular U.S. consumer watchdog.

The Kentucky Bankers Association is seeking to halt Attorney General Daniel Cameron's investigation into climate commitments made by six large banks. The suit alleges that the AG overstepped his authority by seeking to compel the banks to turn over certain documents and communications.

Financial Services Committee Chair Maxine Waters and the panel's top Republican, Rep. Patrick McHenry, pressed bank regulators to support bipartisan stablecoin legislation and other efforts to toughen standards for cryptocurrencies in the aftermath of the FTX collapse.

A major hurdle for employees who want to speak out about workplace sexual harassment is poised to be removed — with significant ramifications across Wall Street, which has lagged behind the rest of corporate America in scaling back nondisclosure agreements.

A heated panel discussion sponsored by the Federal Housing Finance Agency raised questions about the funding, structure and mission of the Home Loan banks.

The Biden administration is considering extending its pause on student loan repayments, now set to resume Jan. 1, in response to legal challenges to its student-debt forgiveness program, according to people familiar with the internal discussions.

In a new report, the Treasury Department also raises the question of scrapping the $10 billion threshold for debit card issuers in the Durbin amendment.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is challenging a recent appeals court decision that its funding through the Federal Reserve Board violates the separation of powers doctrine. That ruling "threatens to inflict immense legal and practical harms" on financial regulation, the CFPB says.

The agency released two reports Tuesday outlining shortcomings of the background check industry and pledged to root out false information and faulty practices in the space.

The Federal Reserve's vice chair for supervision, in his first appearance before Congress since being confirmed, testified that the banking industry has been spared so far from the chaos in cryptocurrency markets. But he warned that too little is known about nonbank activities that could "blow back" to the regulated financial system.

Republicans and Democrats have made constructive inroads toward drafting a stablecoin bill this Congress. The next Congress needs to build on that progress — and think bigger.

Tools used by financial regulators to gauge the impact of climate change on the financial system are probably underestimating the potential damage because of incomplete data and inadequate scenario analyses, according to Financial Stability Board, a watchdog group.

Questions about whether reserve banks are federal agencies and what role the Board of Governors plays in master account decisions should be answered in court, a federal judge ruled.

Martin Gruenberg has been acting chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. since February and is the longest-serving member of the FDIC board.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the implosion of Sam Bankman-Fried's FTX crypto empire reinforced her view that the market for digital assets required "very careful regulation."

The Federal Reserve notched two badly needed wins last week, as inflation showed signs of easing and the financial system withstood the collapse of one of the world's biggest crypto firms. Here's what that means for the central bank moving forward.

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act provides billions in grants for state and local governments. The challenge now is how quickly and effectively they can spend it amid an inflation–fueled rising–rate environment.

Incumbent Senate Banking Committee member Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., narrowly won reelection Saturday night in a victory that will have significant implications for the Biden administration's policy agenda.