law-regulation

Dodd-Frank's Legacy Depends on CFPB Flexing Its Muscles

08/03/15

The CFPB's long-term reputation Â-- and perhaps Dodd-Frank's overall success Â-- may well be judged on whether the bureau moves beyond areas where it was specifically instructed to take action and exercises broader authority granted to it by Congress.

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The Truth About This Bank, the Whole Truth, Nothing But: Weekly Wrap

07/31/15

A recap of the informed opinions (and the discussions they generated) on BankThink this week, including whether independent consultants should be criminally liable for misrepresentations in their reports and whether higher rates will help or hurt banks.

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CFPB Negligence Standard Casts a Broad Net

07/31/15

It's not enough for banks to avoid deceptive practices. As the CFPB's latest enforcement action against JPMorgan Chase makes clear, banks are obligated to ensure their systems protect consumers from easily preventable mistakes.

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Why the FCC's Robo-Call Ruling Is Unfair to Banks

07/30/15

A recent FCC ruling lumps legitimate businesses in with the telemarketing abusers and will hold banks to unrealistic standards.

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Regulators Should Hold CIT Bank Accountable for Strong CRA Plan

07/29/15

Regulators have given the merger between CIT Group and OneWest Bank the green light Â-- so long as CIT comes up with a revised Community Reinvestment Act plan. This condition is good news for the low-income communities impacted by the merger and sets a strong precedent for regulators' review of future bank deals.

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Make Bank Consultants Directly Accountable to Regulators

07/27/15

Regulators rely for critical information on consulting firms that are paid by the very same banks that they are engaged to evaluate. This conflict of interest has repeatedly proven toxic.

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The Dodd-Frank Haters Club: Weekly Wrap

07/24/15

A recap of the informed opinions (and the discussions they generated) on BankThink this week, including recommended reforms to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and Ripple Labs' efforts to work toward a decentralized payments protocol.

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How to Bring Market Discipline Back to Banking

07/23/15

Regulators and lawmakers are wrong to focus on bank size as a measure of risk. A far better indicator of bank stability is the riskiness of a bank's assets, as well as which of the bank's sources of funding bear that risk.

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Act Fast to Raise Midsize Banks' Asset Threshold

07/22/15

A growing number of regulators have indicated their support for raising the asset thresholds at which banks face new regulatory requirements. That's welcome news Â-- but time is of the essence in implementing any changes.

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Count Credit Unions Among Dodd-Frank's Collateral Damage

07/21/15

Rolling back unnecessarily burdensome and costly regulations is the only way to ensure credit unionsÂ' survival. To that end, lawmakers should pass a bill that would give credit unions relief from annual privacy notice requirements and grant safe harbor qualified-mortgage status for certain loans held in their portfolios.

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