Ebrima Santos Sanneh

William Isaac led the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. through the banking and thrift crises of the 1980s and was a frequent commentator on bank regulation after his time in public service.

Newly minted Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh will host his inaugural press conference on Wednesday. Bankers will be paying close attention to what he says — and how he says it.

Banking Committee Democrats warned that the Trump administration's failure to nominate Democrats to vacancies at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., Securities and Exchange Commission and National Credit Union Administration threatens the bipartisan structure Congress established for financial regulators.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent downplayed senators' concerns about higher costs for Americans, noting average yearly inflation is lower than during the pandemic, while also confirming acting Attorney General Todd Blanche's Tuesday claim that the administration will not move forward with a $1.8 billion "anti-weaponization fund."

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. said banks earned stronger profits and expanded lending in the first quarter of 2026, but at the same time margins shrank and unrealized losses have been increasing.

The Consumer Price Index for April showed consumer prices rising across all categories, including food and shelter costs, and up 3.8% year-over-year. Grocery prices rose 0.7% from the month prior.

Employers hired an additional 115,000 workers in April, while unemployment remained unchanged at 4.3%. Despite the positive headline figure, a spike in newly unemployed workers and a rising number of underemployed workers suggests instability under the surface.

Even as they continue to press for additional changes, banks get some wins from the revised Basel capital framework and a ballpark estimate of their capital outlook for the next few years.

Fintech firm IntraFi's most recent quarterly survey of bank executives showed rising pessimism among bankers related to "instability in Washington," as well as growing concerns about technology-enabled fraud.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Wednesday defended cuts to the Community Development Financial Institution Fund in the president's 2027 budget, telling the Senate Appropriations Committee that the program had pursued a "partisan wish list."

A 21.2% spike in the price of gasoline was the biggest contributor to a 0.9% increase in the Consumer Price Index in March, according to a Friday report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The agency said other price increases were largely contained.

New jobs in health care largely drove the gains, while the federal workforce and finance continued to shrink.

Banks have a lot to celebrate in the operational risk framework, but advocates warn it cuts capital too far.

A coalition of Democratic attorneys general, led by California and Illinois, have sued the Department of Housing and Urban Development over a guidance that they argue will scale back enforcement to strict federal standards and threaten state funding to enforce fair housing laws.

Federal bank enforcement actions have dropped sharply since the start of the second Trump administration, but experts' views vary about whether less enforcement will result in a buildup of risk in the financial system.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the economy lost 92,000 jobs in February while unemployment held steady at 4.4%, a development that could spur the Federal Reserve to question whether interest rates are truly in balance.

The bank exited the $1.95-trillion asset cap last year, but it had remained subject to the rest of the eight-year-old order.

The heads of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and National Credit Union Administration, as well as the Federal Reserve vice chair for supervision, will testify in the Senate Thursday morning in their first joint appearance in the upper chamber since being confirmed.

Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. report shows margins widened and profitability remained high even as credit quality saw some wobbles from consumer and commercial loan portfolios. 

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a public appearance in Dallas Friday that the administration will seek alternative means of enacting the White House's tariff agenda after the Supreme Court struck down the tariffs as outside the bounds of the law.