Regulatory reform

With officials putting finishing touches on presidentially directed reports on the future of the housing finance system, the Senate Banking Committee announced a hearing to examine the issue.

Readers react to jilted GSE legacy shareholders and a proposal making it harder to cite disparate impact, criticize Democrats asking the CFPB to stop its payday rule revamp and more.

The mortgage industry will be looking for answers when Treasury and HUD unveil reports on housing finance reform, but the Trump administration’s plans could also raise a whole new host of questions.

The Treasury’s takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac left legacy shareholders holding the bag.

Though advocates and industry are rarely aligned, they are starting to coalesce around a plan that would call for the elimination of the CFPB’s 43% debt-to-income limit as part of its qualified mortgage rule.

When lawmakers return from their August recess, a host of unresolved financial policy issues — from marijuana banking to anti-money-laundering rule — will greet them.

The agencies handed banks a significant victory when they finalized revisions to the Dodd-Frank proprietary trading ban, but officials also plan to re-propose changes to the “covered funds” section of the rule.

After two regulatory agencies adopted final revisions to the rule, Dodd-Frank defenders expressed concern that the amendments to the proprietary trading ban undermined the post-crisis statute.

The agency is trying to update its rate-cap policy for institutions that fall below "well-capitalized." But it remains to be seen if the proposed changes fully address community bankers' concerns.

The agencies had proposed an "accounting prong" as an alternative means to determine which proprietary trades are banned, but their final rule heeded industry concerns that that would be worse than the current approach.

The power couple wants to help turn Acorns Grow from a niche app into a megabank; with many floating-rate loans, regionals’ profits drop as yields slip.

Banks stand to enjoy new flexibility in complying with Dodd-Frank’s proprietary trading ban, but it remains to be seen if regulators will grant them all the relief they have sought.

The agency says the "disparate impact" standard needs to be amended to align with a recent Supreme Court ruling. But consumer advocates say the change would make it more difficult for borrowers to allege discrimination under the Fair Housing Act.

Treliant and Federal Financial Analytics have established a one-stop shop to guide financial institutions through uncertain business and policy times.

Critics of the Dodd-Frank provision are likely heartened by indications that policymakers may soon finalize a more bank-friendly version of the trading ban, but that relief could come at a price.

Wall Street watchdogs are poised to take a major step toward overhauling limits on banks’ ability to trade with their own funds, according to people familiar with the effort.

From housing finance to Facebook’s crypto plans, moderators questioning the presidential candidates in Texas next month would have no shortage of financial policy topics from which to pick.

Banks currently can help their CRA performance with mortgages to anyone in a distressed neighborhood, but Joseph Otting said officials crafting a reform plan are considering limiting that to lower-income borrowers.

The head of the Senate Banking Committee invited the housing secretary to Idaho to discuss low-income housing shortages.

Vice Chairman Randal Quarles’ public dissent raises questions about how the board will proceed on other policy debates.