Regulatory reform

Several Senate, House and gubernatorial battles are of interest to financial firms. Here is a spotlight on specific contests, with updates as they become available.

The federal agencies said in a recent statement that “guidance does not have the force and effect of law,” but two trade groups say that standard should be more binding.

The Federal Reserve Board plan to revise its post-crisis framework promises reduced compliance costs and other benefits. But some analysts see the removal of guardrails as increasing failure risk, which may spook investors.

The battle gaining the most attention Tuesday night will be which party controls the House next year. But other key races will help determine the makeup of the Senate Banking Committee.

The final rule aligns ratings with a supervisory program the Fed established in 2012 to emphasize capital, liquidity, and governance and controls.

Synchrony CEO Margaret Keane says plastic cards will be gone in five years; David Tyrie is succeeding the high-profile Michelle Moore as BofA's digital chief; Fed outlines a new approach for its post-crisis supervisory program; and more from this week's most-read stories.

The two allegedly helped to defraud a Malaysian sovereign wealth fund; Michelle Bowman is expected to bring a Main Street perspective to the central bank.

One of the biggest sticking points as regulators try to reform the Community Reinvestment Act is expanding the assessment footprint but ensuring banks continue to serve their direct communities.

Regional lenders would be subject to less regulation while the biggest banks would see no change; the insurance giant got hit with claims from several large natural catastrophes.

Regional banks were the ultimate winners in the Federal Reserve’s proposal to tailor supervision, but rules for the biggest banks remained largely unchanged.