Treasury

Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) requirements would be strengthened and extended to cover credit unions and nonbank mortgage companies under a new bill sponsored by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.).

The legislation’s introduction comes as financial trade organizations have continued to see progress toward long-advocated CRA updates intended to lessen the regulatory burden it places on financial institutions. A Moody’s study indicated the bill could have positive economic effects in addition to helping low- and middle-income families.

Find out more details about the varied opinions on the new legislation.

Determining that its market activities did not pose significant systemic economic risk, the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) announced that Zions Bank will not be treated as a designated nonbank financial company upon completion of its merger with Zions Bancorporation.

In its final decision, FSOC noted arguments Zions stressed in a written submission advocating for the regulators not to subject the company to enhanced regulatory scrutiny reserved for large nonbank financial institutions, and argued that any two entities could structure a merger that subverted Section 117 of the Dodd-Frank Act.

Find out more details about the merger and the council’s decision.

State National Bank of Big Spring, Texas, recently joined with the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI), and the 60 Plus Association in petitioning the Supreme Court to issue summary judgment regarding a lawsuit initially filed in 2012 against former Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew, making a case for the abolishment of the bureau and every regulation enacted by it.

The fact that D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Brett Kavanaugh ruled on the case in 2015, gave a dissenting opinion in the PHH Corp. v. CFPB case asserting that the bureau is unconstitutionally structured and is awaiting Senate confirmation to join the Supreme Court adds significant intrigue to the matter.

Get more details about the lawsuit and what Kavanaugh previously said about its merits.

The future of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) payday lending rule has been mired in uncertainty since acting director Mick Mulvaney’s January announcement that he intended to “revisit” it, and seemed quite bleak after Mulvaney filed an amicus brief in June supporting the plaintiffs in a case challenging the rule’s validity.

Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) Assistant Vice President and Regulatory Counsel Rhonda Thomas-Whitley told Dodd Frank Update the fact that Kathy Kraninger’s nomination to the director’s chair at the bureau is still pending full Senate approval is reason enough for any interested party reluctant to make any predictions about the likelihood of such a move.

Find out more details about considerations that could work against the rule’s chances of surviving reconsideration by the bureau.

To encourage continued growth among fintech companies and all parts of the financial services industry, a recent Treasury Department report recommends the curtailment of certain regulations enacted in response to the financial crisis that may hinder innovation in the financial marketplace.

With that in mind, the report lists numerous recommendations for action Congress and federal regulators can take to better tailor the regulatory environment accordingly.

Get an in-depth picture of how the department believes the marketplace can be more innovation-friendly.

Siding with certain banking trade groups, the Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service recently proposed rules and guidance stipulating that banks qualify for a tax deduction created by the enactment of the 2017 tax reform bill to help small businesses.

Treasury stated that “banking” and “financial services” are separate industries, with financial services qualifying as a specified service trade or business (SSTB), unable to access the 20 percent tax deduction for pass-through entities.

Learn what the distinction could mean for the nearly 2,000 banks registered as pass-through businesses. 

To improve the quality of information exchanged between financial entities and third-party debt collectors, the Treasury provided a host of regulatory actions for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and other federal agencies to consider in its recent report titled “A Financial System That Creates Economic Opportunities Nonbank Financials, Fintech, and Innovation.”

In addition to rulemaking and guidance activities, the department’s recommendations also involve reforms to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) and related actions by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to facilitate better data aggregation practices.

Find out what actions the Treasury is recommending various parties take to accomplish the aforementioned objectives.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency announced that it will begin accepting special charter applications from non-depository financial services providers.

The announcement came in tandem with a Treasury Department report identifying regulatory improvements that could provide better oversight of support nonbank financial institutions, addressing a major point of contention for the banking industry.

Find out more about the agency’s announcement and the industry’s reaction.

Kimberly Reed is in line to become the first Export-Import president in four years and the first woman to hold the role since its establishment in 1934.

Reed received support from the Senate Banking Committee last December after being nominated to become the first vice president of the Ex-Im Bank. There were few, if any, indications during her confirmation hearing for the president’s seat that the committee’s support has wavered. 

Find out what qualifications she brings to the table and what values she pledged to uphold if confirmed.

The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals has declared the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) to be unconstitutionally structured, making it the second federal regulatory body to receive such a ruling within the past month.

The ruling has meaningful implications for those advocating Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to be recapitalized and released from conservatorship under the FHFA.

Learn some of the details that led to the ruling by the three-judge panel.