Regulatory relief

The federal banking agencies will not hold a hearing on a proposal to reduce the number of residential real estate transactions that require an appraisal.

Criticism of the National Credit Union Administration is unwarranted given the myriad of abuses banks commit.

Members of both parties want to make it easier for legal cannabis businesses to access financial services, but myriad obstacles stand in the way of that goal.

The agency began seeking comments in December through a "request for information" on how to improve the agency's process for considering new deposit insurance applications.

The bureau wants to further remove the threat of legal liability for firms that test products benefiting consumers, but the attorneys general say the agency cannot provide immunity from state law.

In her first speech as a governor, the former community banker and Kansas state regulator highlighted the strengths of smaller institutions and the banking agencies' tailoring efforts.

Some have suggested the BB&T-SunTrust deal could spur similar ones, but prolonged M&A growth is hardly a sure thing in this political environment.

“The board's record of summarily approving mergers raises doubts about whether it will serve as a meaningful check on this consolidation that creates a new too big to fail bank,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren said in a letter to the Fed.

House Financial Services Chairwoman Maxine Waters said the merger is a direct result of a regulatory relief bill that was signed into law in May.

The combined bank will move into a more demanding supervisory class under the Fed’s regime, but analysts also see a regulatory upside from the deal.