Tax

The National Association of Federally-Insured Credit Unions and the Credit Union National Association sent a joint letter to Sen. Orrin Hatch on Wednesday defending the credit union charter and its tax status.

As U.S. banks were tallying up the billions of dollars in extra profits they'll reap from the sweeping tax cuts signed into law by President Donald Trump, they were quietly delivering unwelcome news to local governments: The interest rates on their loans were about to go up.

Tax reform caused Fannie Mae to burn through retained earnings that had been approved just two months ago and to post a fourth-quarter loss. CEO Timothy Mayopoulos argued it was a one-time event that overshadowed strong fundamentals.

It’s too soon to gauge the true impact of recent tax cuts on loan demand, but anecdotes from bankers suggest that, after months of stagnation, pipelines are filling up again.

Several banks suffered fourth-quarter hits when they reduced the value of certain energy investments. Still, renewable energy could remain a viable business thanks to other benefits embedded in the tax law.

Profits fell 42% at the Birmingham, Ala., bank because of a $121 million tax charge in the fourth quarter, but net interest income and noninterest income each rose 14%, softening the blow of the one-time tax hit.

Credit union groups were scrambling Wednesday to respond to a letter from Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch questioning whether the industry had outgrown its income-tax exemption.

In the wake of President Trump’s tax cut, banks would be wise to take the time to explore investment opportunities before returning increased profits to shareholders.

Swelling capital levels, tax cuts and changing attitudes about post-crisis regulation could encourage bigger banks to issue the one-time payouts to reward shareholders and better manage their returns.

The company, which has been actively curbing growth to avoid becoming a systemically important financial institution, reported lower loan balances and reduced fee income after exiting the residential wholesale mortgage business.

The busy legislative agenda laid out by President Trump in the State of the Union speech Tuesday night casts doubt on how quickly Congress can move on financial services legislation, particularly a housing finance reform package.

Commercial lending and mortgage income surged in the fourth quarter at the West Virginia bank thanks to two acquisitions, but a tax charge cut into profits.

The Texas bank also capitalized on rising rates and a positive adjustment to deferred taxes tied to tax reform in reporting a double-digit gain to profits in the fourth quarter.

The Chicago custody bank won new fund-administration business and benefited from the acquisition of a UBS asset-management unit. A one-time adjustment tied to the new tax law also provided a boost.

A plan by the largest U.S. bank to use part of its tax windfall to enter new markets (including Washington and Boston) could become a serious threat for banks of all sizes in those cities — or looked backed upon someday as a pricey overexpansion.

Consumer lending was a bright spot, but a series of one-time charges, capped by a writedown on its deferred tax assets, led to a nearly $1 billion loss.

The new tax law took a one-time bite out of fourth-quarter results, but higher rates strengthened yields and new business boosted fee income.

Flagstar Bancorp swung to a fourth-quarter loss as the company took an $80 million noncash charge to earnings because of the tax reform bill.

The Pittsburgh company reported a noisy fourth quarter that included expenses tied to its purchase of Yadkin Financial and a reduction in the value of its deferred tax assets.

The Florida company's fourth-quarter results included double-digit loan growth and a $328 million income tax benefit associated with recently passed tax reform.