After talks with well-connected lawyers for Barclays and the Royal Bank of Scotland, senior Justice Department officials in Washington last year overruled career prosecutors who had been investigating wrongdoing that cost investors billions.
America's farms have taken on near-record levels of debt in recent years, and commodity prices and trade wars are putting pressure on farm country. That could spell bad news for bankers that lend to them.
Beginning next year, banks will have to dramatically change the way they account for future credit losses, but experts disagree on the new rule's long-term impact.
Banks claim that regulators have been avoiding using a transparent public process to implement new regulations, opting instead to use informal guidance that has the impact of policy.
Stress tests have come a long way since first unveiled to shore up confidence in banks. But some critics fear that proposals to make the system more efficient would compromise its safety.
