regulation-reform

The Supreme Court has agreed to consider a case related to the use of disparate impact theory to charge organizations with discrimination under the Fair Housing Act. The case highlights a key problem with current interpretation of the statute: it ignores a basic statistical pattern that makes it hard to determine which practices would produce a better outcome for protected groups.

A recap of the informed opinions (and the discussions they generated) on BankThink this week.

Banks are hiring armies of lawyers, accountants, compliance consultants and IT vendors as they prepare to comply with the Volcker Rule. Ironically, their attempts to fortify themselves with outsourced knowledge could expose them to more operational risk.

Thanks to the rise of online and mobile banking, some banks now have significant customer bases in areas where they have little branch presence. The solution is to carve out a category of virtual banks that have tailored CRA responsibilities and examination standards.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's report on private student loans should prompt lenders, regulators and universities to take action to help troubled borrowers and prevent future defaults.