Bank of America fined $225M over 'botched' disbursement of unemployment benefits

The CFPB accused the bank of implementing a faulty fraud filter that would trigger an account freeze over a “simple set of flags.”

By Anna Hrushka • July 14, 2022

Lawmakers air CRA concerns over race, data collection

The rule’s focus on income level rather than race does not do enough to address disparities along racial lines, some Democrats say.

By Anna Hrushka • July 14, 2022

Explore the Trendline➔

M&A

President Donald Trump’s reelection was predicted to yield loosened regulation. But tariff volatility and economic uncertainty has thrown a wrench into an expected boom in mergers and acquisitions.

By Banking Dive staff

Senate confirms Barr to fill Fed supervisory role

The incoming central bank official is expected to have a hand in shaping Fed policy with regard to bank mergers, climate risk’s role in stress tests, and the supplementary leverage ratio.

By Dan Ennis • July 14, 2022

Lawmakers renew push for overdraft legislation

Meanwhile, a New York regulator said Tuesday it is conducting a review aimed at curtailing banks from double-charging users in the event of an overdraft.

By Anna Hrushka • July 13, 2022

BMO Harris boosts minimum wage to $20

The move marks the second pay bump within a year for the lowest-paid workers of the Chicago-based U.S. arm of the Bank of Montreal. The bank also gave most employees a 3% raise in June, it said.

By Dan Ennis • July 12, 2022

Brainard urges more oversight of crypto

The Federal Reserve vice chair on Friday said the May collapse of the Terra stablecoin, which wiped out millions of dollars in a matter of days, was “reminiscent of classic runs throughout history.”

By Anna Hrushka • July 11, 2022

Republic First CEO Vernon Hill resigns

An appeals court ruling last week broke a months-long power struggle, allowing the bank’s board to appoint a new member to replace a Hill ally who died.

By Dan Ennis • July 11, 2022

FDIC probes Voyager's language surrounding deposit insurance

The agency issued a final rule regarding misrepresentation in May. Voyager recently altered text on its website regarding customer reimbursement in the event of failure, according to two news outlets.

By Dan Ennis • July 8, 2022

Banks aren’t doing enough to address Zelle fraud, senators say

Months after writing the CEO of Zelle’s parent company, Sens. Bob Menendez and Elizabeth Warren — with six other lawmakers signing on — are seeking information from seven banks with ownership stakes in the platform.

By Anna Hrushka • July 8, 2022

HSBC exec resigns after suspension over climate comments

“A cancel culture destroys wealth and progress,” Stuart Kirk wrote Thursday in a LinkedIn post. “There is no place for virtue [signaling] in finance.”

By Dan Ennis • July 7, 2022

BMO Harris to cut overdraft fees to $15 from $36

The bank in November reduced the number of overdraft and NSF charges a customer can run up per day. It also increased — to $50 in the red — the threshold at which customers incur an overdraft fee.

By Robin Bradley • July 5, 2022

Payactiv jettisons some fees in wake of CFPB move

The earned wage access provider said it was eliminating some fees just as the bureau decided to remove a prior order giving the company leeway under certain laws.

By Jonathan Berr • July 5, 2022

CFPB terminates Payactiv's sandbox protection

The earned wage access provider told the CFPB last week it wanted to make changes to its fee model without review by the bureau. The bureau, in turn, expressed concern over potentially misleading public statements by Payactiv.

By Dan Ennis • July 1, 2022

Waters urges regulators to 'escalate penalties' against Wells Fargo

The chair of the House Financial Services Committee called on the CFPB, OCC, FDIC, Fed and HUD to address mounting reports of consumer abuses and discriminatory behavior at the San Francisco-based bank.

By Robin Bradley • June 30, 2022

Toomey, other GOP senators blast KC Fed over master account silence

The regional Fed president’s refusal to give lawmakers details represents "obstructionism" and shows the need for more transparency and accountability to Congress at the central bank, the senators wrote.

By Dan Ennis • June 30, 2022

Chamber of Commerce, trade groups blast CFPB for perceived overreach

The groups demand the regulator rescind updates to an exam manual that pushes the definition of “unfairness” to include discrimination.

By Robin Bradley • June 29, 2022

Bank regulators' heightened scrutiny of AI highlights third-party risk

As regulators signal a tighter focus on artificial intelligence and machine learning, banks need to be vigilant about their internal models, as well as the models used by vendors, an expert says.

By Anna Hrushka • June 29, 2022

Ex-First Republic co-CEO Erkan to take the reins atop Greystone

Erkan’s abrupt departure from First Republic in January came days after the bank’s founder went on medical leave — opening a potential leadership vacuum that has sent the company’s stock price spiraling.

By Robin Bradley • June 28, 2022

Goldman boosts dividend as JPMorgan, Citi stand pat

Shareholder returns are expected to see a 13.6% average increase across the six biggest U.S. banks — far less than the 40.4% average jump between 2020 and 2021.

By Dan Ennis • June 28, 2022

Tennessee regulator files appeal to block credit union's bank takeover

Financial Federal Bank account holders would be “irreparably harmed and disrupted” — as would the state’s interest in maintaining a safe and sound banking system — if the deal is allowed to close, a state official argued.

By Anna Hrushka • June 28, 2022

JPMorgan, Goldman, BofA pledge to cover employee travel for abortion

The overturning of Roe v. Wade has prompted a new wave of policy shifts. The banks are following Citi, which said in March it would pay for workers to get the procedure out of state.

By Robin Bradley • June 27, 2022

New Fed financial disclosures omit regional chiefs tied to trading scandal

“The rules in place when President [Robert] Kaplan departed did not require him to file an updated financial disclosure upon his departure,” James Hoard, a Dallas Fed representative, told The New York Times.

By Anna Hrushka • June 27, 2022

Judge denies Citi whistle-blower a share of $400M OCC penalty

A district court agreed with U.S. attorneys’ April assertion that the OCC's workstream addressing the complaint was separate from the one assessing the actions that resulted in the fine.

By Dan Ennis • June 27, 2022

Big banks pass muster in Fed's annual stress test

The 33 largest U.S. banks would be able to maintain adequate capital levels in the event of a severe recession, the Federal Reserve found in its latest annual bank stress test. 

By Robin Bradley • June 24, 2022

Cannabis banking nixed from competition bill

Bowing to Republican demand, leaders from both parties decided to exclude the Secure and Fair Enforcement Banking Act from the bicameral version of the America COMPETES Act.

By Anna Hrushka • June 24, 2022