Politics

The nomination of Lisa Cook, an economics professor who is one of President Biden's choices for the Federal Reserve's Board of Governors, advanced Tuesday on a party-line procedural vote in the Senate.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said it expects credit card companies to increase fees — often around $30 — charged when customer miss a payment. The higher prices are allowed under rules that authorize inflation adjustments.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau will potentially be banning business practices, forcing the divestiture of business lines and working with state agencies to revoke licenses, Director Rohit Chopra said Monday. He called out five big banks by name for repeatedly crossing legal lines.

The White House's $5.8 trillion spending proposal to Congress includes more dollars for anti-money-laundering enforcement, Small Business Administration loan guarantee programs and affordable housing financed by community development financial institutions.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. has submitted its request for information — which asks whether banks should bear the burden of proof in merger applications and how much input the CFPB should have in approving deals — to the Federal Register.

A push by Republican Sen. Cynthia Lummis, one of the crypto industry’s staunchest supporters in Congress, to write a new law for digital assets is getting the support of at least one Democrat.

Banking and credit union regulators are expected to respond to a White House call to root out discrimination in the predominantly white appraisal business. They will likely step up enforcement and data collection, reclaiming authority long ceded to the industry's governing body.

Senate Banking Chair Sherrod Brown said Thursday he expects a Senate vote next week to confirm President Biden’s Federal Reserve nominees, though the timing may be affected by GOP opposition to Lisa Cook, who would be the first Black woman on the Board of Governors.

Deutsche Bank's wealth management business has stopped accepting new Russian clients living abroad, joining other lenders in reducing business with the country’s rich.

House Financial Services Committee Chair Maxine Waters has asked more than 30 trade associations, including banking groups, to describe how their members — company by company — have limited or ended their dealings in Russia since its invasion of Ukraine.

In global news this week, Apple may bring its card to the U.K. but faces backlash in the Netherlands; Japan's JCB is launching a travel card in India; banks drop from the European Payments Initiative; and more.

Barclays plans to step up its financing of renewable energy as Russia’s war on Ukraine adds to the urgency of moving away from fossil fuels.

The actions involved are based on findings by an interagency task force first convened last year by Marcia Fudge, secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Nellie Liang, the Treasury Department's under secretary for domestic finance, said there’s consensus on the risks posed by digital assets. But she was vague about how much progress has been made in discussions between the administration and lawmakers about toughening the regulatory system.

Visa Chief Executive Al Kelly, who’s been helping employees and their families who have fled the war in Ukraine, said he expects a “prolonged battle” because Russian President Vladimir Putin has underestimated the strength of the resistance. 

Federal financial agencies’ role in combating climate change has become a politically polarized topic, as the withdrawal of Fed nominee Sarah Bloom Raskin shows. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and other regulators could make changes to exam procedures and take other steps that don’t require congressional cooperation.

Credit Agricole has suspended its activities in Russia, joining a growing list of lenders scaling back their business in the country after the invasion of Ukraine.

Russian banks are reportedly courting the Chinese payment network to overcome the loss of Visa and Mastercard. The strategy would test China's willingness to provoke a response from the international community.

The City Council recently voted 15-1 to establish a financial authority that would provide credit enhancements on loans to underserved borrowers. Public banking advocates say the effort is both an interim step for Philadelphia and a test case for other cities.

Sanctions imposed over the Ukraine war prompted the French bank to tell commercial clients it won't process their Russian transactions after March.