Claire Williams

A forthcoming bill from Sens. Jim Banks, R-Ind., and Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., would allow the Federal Housing Finance Agency director to set limits on executive pay at the Federal Home Loan banks.

The Senate voted to confirm Federal Reserve Gov. Michelle Bowman's nomination to be the vice chair for supervision at the central bank in a 48-46 party-line vote.

Elon Musk, formerly head of the Department of Government Efficiency, said he will officially leave the federal government after a short but tumultuous tenure. DOGE's actions at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau are being reviewed in federal court.

In a dramatic move, conservative hardliners blocked President Donald Trump's tax and spending bill, which would have included many measures favored by banks.

Banks scored well in the tax bill out of Ways and Means this week, with wins on S Corps and rural lending, but have so far lost out on credit union taxes and additional burdens on payments competitors.

The Trump administration says it will nominate Jonathan McKernan to serve as Treasury undersecretary for domestic finance. McKernan has already been nominated as the next director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

In a party-line vote, the committee sent the nomination of Michelle Bowman as the Federal Reserve's vice chair of supervision to the full Senate.

President Donald Trump's proposed budget would nix funding for Community Development Financial Institutions in minority-heavy areas while expanding it for rural areas.

Sen. Dick Durbin, the Senate's No. 2 Democrat, announced he will not seek reelection in 2026, concluding more than four decades in Congress. The Illinois lawmaker leaves behind a notable imprint on U.S. financial policy, particularly regarding swipe fees.

House Financial Services Committee ranking member Maxine Waters, D-Calif., led a group of Democrats in challenging Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent over the current state of the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is laying off more than 1,400 employees just days after a panel of judges said the bureau couldn't fire employees without an assessment of whether the workers are unnecessary to perform the bureau's legally mandated duties.

A bill being introduced by Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., would compel the Federal Home Loan Bank System to contribute 30%, or a minimum of $200 million, of each bank's net earnings into affordable housing or other community development programs.

Federal Reserve Gov. Michelle Bowman, who has been nominated to be the central bank's top regulator, sidestepped direct questions about the Trump administration's incursion into the Fed's regulatory independence.

Congressional Review Act resolutions to nullify the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's overdraft and larger participant rules now go to President Trump for his signature.

Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott said Jonathan McKernan's final confirmation vote to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is "imminent."

Bankers are growing frustrated as President Donald Trump's trade policy causes turmoil in markets and confusion for clients. But banking trade groups in Washington — at least publicly — are remaining silent.

Jonathan Gould, President Donald Trump's pick to lead the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, passed through the Senate Banking Committee on a party-line 13 to 11 vote.

The Treasury Department told the OMB that all 11 programs in the CDFI Fund are statutorily mandated. The White House said "no final decisions have been made" about the programs.

The Senate Banking Committee considered the nomination of Paul Atkins to lead the Securities and Exchange Commission, whose track record on deregulation in the lead up to the 2008 financial crisis was questioned by Democratic lawmakers. Lawmakers also considered the nomination of Jonathan Gould to lead the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and Luke Pettit for a key bank regulatory role at Treasury.

Rep. Andy Barr, R-Ky., who chairs the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Financial Institutions, called the CFPB under the Biden administration and former Director Rohit Chopra an "Orwellian predator."