Politics

The Federal Housing Administration has a floated modernized policy that could permanently replace the temporary one but was asked for more implementation time.

Heads of the three major bank regulatory agencies made their case for why the recently finalized framework implementing the Community Reinvestment Act is not all bad for the banks subjected to it.

The Financial Stability Oversight Council enhanced its powers to designate nonbank financial institutions as systemically important Friday, emphasizing transparency and the need to protect financial stability.

Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michael Barr says that while there has been some opposition to the recent overhaul of Community Reinvestment Act regulations, he expects that banks, supervisors and communities will adapt and thrive once it's fully implemented.

The seizure of servicing from Reverse Mortgage Funding's bankruptcy has had ripple effects ranging from a private legal challenge to broader policy changes.

Trade groups, analysts and some regulators want more data on how various regulatory changes and proposals would impact the banking sector in totality. But regulatory agencies have yet to take on such a project and private sector groups say the task is beyond their capabilities.

President Joe Biden's executive order tackling artificial intelligence could reprioritize the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's work in fair lending on artificial intelligence algorithms.

In conjunction with an announcement last week, federal agencies will conduct training workshops to help developers, lenders and other stakeholders benefit from the Biden administration's housing supply plan.

Consumer spending has driven core inflation metrics to their highest levels in months, according to data released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. Higher inflation will likely serve as a signal to the Federal Reserve to maintain high interest rates.

Banks and dissenting policymakers have raised the possibility of challenging regulators' Community Reinvestment Act overhaul in court, but it remains unclear whether they intend to walk the walk.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau found that more consumers are being charged late fees, while determining that the average cardholder carried $5,288 in total credit card debt last year.

Rep. Andy Barr, R-Ky., a senior Republican on the House Financial Services Committee, said he intends to press Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell to refine the Basel III capital proposal before it is finalized.

After years of discussion among regulators, the Federal Reserve Board has approved changes to its CRA rules that will base compliance exams on where lending occurs rather than branch locations. The updates — set to take effect in January 2026 — also emphasize lending in lower-income areas as well as community development loans and investments.

Regulators will now accept feedback until Jan 16, 2024 — a six-week extension — concurrent with a Federal Reserve effort to gather additional information about the potential implications of the proposed capital changes.

Acting Comptroller of the Currency Michael Hsu says the process of determining whether certain lending activities and investments qualify for Community Reinvestment Act credit under regulators' forthcoming final rule "has to be better and it's got to be faster" than the status quo.

Amid the release of Q3 bank earnings, the Chairman of Whalen Global Advisors ponders whether efforts from the government-related entities help or hurt the independent mortgage bankers that are taking up a greater and greater share of 1-4 family lending and servicing.

Rep. Andy Barr, R-Ky., again pressed the Federal Reserve for economic analysis of capital proposals, while Rep. French Hill, R-Ark., reintroduced a bill that would limit the Fed's ability to extend money to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

More than half the amount the Treasury handed down to the states got to recipients even with delays in jurisdictions like Pennsylvania.

The Federal Reserve vice chair for supervision says the failure of Silicon Valley Bank showed the shortcomings of the current stress testing regime.

The Department of Justice alleged that Ameris failed to open a single bank branch or provide home loans in minority neighborhoods in Jacksonville, Florida. Attorney General Merrick Garland said that many similar redlining investigations are currently underway.