Regulatory reform

The lawsuit filed on behalf of the National Association for Latino Community Asset Builders says the rule was based on “an invented evidentiary standard,” and failed to consider consumer protections mandated by Dodd-Frank.

The agency finalized a rule to determine which party in a loan sale is subject to regulatory requirements. Advocates charged that the move will help predatory lenders.

The agency's May rule modernizing the Community Reinvestment Act had deferred action on establishing numeric metrics for meeting the law's requirements, but acting Comptroller of the Currency Brian Brooks said banks will soon get more clarity in a follow-up proposal.

The legislation would help institutions with less than $15 billion of assets avoid regulatory requirements resulting from participating in the small-business relief program.

USAA Federal Savings Bank’s downgrade shows how customer mistreatment stemming from flaws in internal controls can hurt Community Reinvestment Act scores. Some want consumer compliance to carry more weight in the CRA calculus.

The credit union regulator has held back in allowing the use of derivatives but has released a proposal that would remove red tape for some larger institutions.

Regulators in the spring temporarily eased a key benchmark of balance-sheet strength to allow institutions to help customers navigate the pandemic, but Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Randal Quarles said it would be “premature” right now to suspend it for good.

House Democrats’ antitrust reform plan intended to rein in companies like Amazon and Google could help level the regulatory playing field between the banking industry and its digital competitors. It could also revive calls to break up financial behemoths.

Kathy Kraninger’s job status would be in question if Joe Biden wins the White House. If the president is reelected, she may continue balancing a deregulatory agenda with her unexpectedly tough stance on enforcement.

The central bank issued a proposal aligning recent stress testing changes with supervisory standards that are tailored to an institution's size and complexity.