Politics

Banking regulators have been debating how to reform the implementing regulations for the Community Reinvestment Act across two presidential administrations. But despite banks' urging to slow down, regulators are poised to finish the job in early fall.

The American Bankers Association and Bank Policy Institute Tuesday urged bank regulators to delay the finalization of its Community Reinvestment Act rule, saying regulators have not calibrated the rule to account for upcoming capital changes or considered whether courts will find the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's funding structure constitutional.

A 2018 report laid the groundwork for the Biden administration's push to root out discrimination in home valuation. A counter study says no such practices exist.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau plans to propose rules to require that data brokers comply with the Fair Credit Reporting Act to limit data from being sold for any reason other than what Congress has specified as having a "permissible purpose," such as credit underwriting.

In its annual report, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. explored the various credit, market and operational risks facing the banking sector. It also explored crypto and climate issues.

Banking and housing experts say that if additional capital burdens spur large banks to pull back on mortgage origination, servicing and funding, the ripple effects could be felt more intensely in the housing market than on banks' bottom lines.

Profit in the first half of the year at the 11 Home Loan banks already exceeds 2022's total.

The board of the Home Loan Bank of San Francisco chose not to renew Teresa Bryce Bazemore's contract that ends in 2024, and has initiated a search for a new CEO.

While financial markets wobbled after Fitch Ratings reduced the U.S. government's credit rating, analysts said the action should have little long-term impact, similar to a downgrade by Standard & Poor's in 2011. JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon argued that Fitch's action "doesn't really matter that much."

Economic disruption of the past several years has led to the inventory and affordability challenges the housing market faces today. But while efforts have been introduced to address them, many are looking at what the government might do to help alleviate the current situation.

The Federal Reserve is leading the push for broader, more standardized risk-capital rules, yet some of its board members, other regulators and industry groups are uncomfortable with the proposal.

Wall Street securities dealers expect a glut of Treasury sales to start coming soon as the government steps up its borrowing.

Federal Reserve Board Gov. Phillip Jefferson joined three other board members in supporting a notice of proposed rulemaking, but expressed concerns about the economic impact of the changes.

The two Trump-appointed governors expressed skepticism that the increased capital requirements for regional banks were necessary to keep the banking sector resilient.

Following the difficulties of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank this spring, banks are approaching the emergency lending facility more proactively, the Federal Reserve chair said.

Analysts look at whether the FOMC will bring the last rate hike in the cycle, whether recession is coming, and whether the Fed is making a policy mistake.

Lenders must ensure that compliance and risk management teams are fully staffed and supported at the highest levels of the organization, writes the director of technology product management at Wolters Kluwer.

Housing finance organizations argue that these companies are relatively small, and allowing other agencies to be the first line of defense has worked.

Plaintiffs accuse the NAR and the multiple listing services of antitrust violations because of rules around shared broker compensation fees.

MSRs already get very punitive treatment relative to other assets and regulatory reform following the banking crisis could increase it, according to some analysts.