Federal Reserve

Citing “continued uncertainty in the economy and the housing market,” federal financial institution regulators issued supervisory guidance January 31 on allowance for loan and lease losses (ALLL) estimation practices associated with loans and...

In a January 25 press release, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) reaffirmed its desire to communicate its intentions “in an open and clear method.” Doing so, the Committee said, should facilitate well-informed decision making by...

Federal Reserve Board Governor Elizabeth A. Duke discussed two issues much on the minds of community bankers at a bank presidents’ seminar held by the California Bankers Association: reducing regulatory burden and improving credit...

Community banks continue to face numerous challenges, including those posed by the enhanced regulatory regime that has evolved in the wake of the financial crisis, Federal Reserve Board Governor Sarah Bloom Raskin acknowledged in a January 6...

The minutes of the December 13 meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) revealed that the Committee is trying to "enhance the clarity and transparency of its public communications." Toward that end, the Committee will expand its...

Bank regulators have expressed concern that asset exchanges may present significant risk to institutions and could compromise their safety and soundness. The Fed noted in a recent Supervision and Regulation Letter (SR 11-15) that, to date, these...

In an apparent attempt to avoid the partisan squabbling that has delayed or blocked so many of his nominees, President Obama has asked the Senate to confirm two nominations to seats on the Federal Reserve Board. One nominee is a Democrat and one...

Price controls don’t really work. That fact may not surprise the average banker or business person, but it seems to come as a shock to many in Congress.

The most recent example of misplaced faith in price controls is the ceiling on...

The federal bank regulators have proposed new market risk capital rules for banks with significant trading activities. The proposal replaces an earlier one issued in December 2010.

The amended proposal includes alternative standards of...

The announcement that the Fed and five other central banks would ease the terms on existing dollar swap arrangements was welcomed by the financial markets. It demonstrated the willingness of the Fed and the other central banks to continue to...

The Federal Reserve Board has issued a final rule requiring top-tier U.S. bank holding companies with total consolidated assets of $50 billion or more to submit annual capital plans for review. The rule implements the Dodd-Frank Act’s...

“I certainly understand that many people are dissatisfied with the state of the economy. I’m dissatisfied with the state of the economy.” Those words from Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke, spoken in response to a reporter’s question about the...

The Fed’s Division of Banking Supervision and Regulation issued guidance (SR 11-14) October 26 reminding banking organizations and supervisory staff of the key risk factors in agricultural lending. The guidance also discussed supervisory...

Nobody did anything wrong, exactly, but the Federal Reserve should have been more careful to avoid the appearance of conflicts of interest as it dealt with the economic crisis of 2008-2009, according to a recent report by the Government...

The Federal Reserve Board has proposed simplifying the administration of reserve requirements under its Regulation D. The proposal would:

•    Create a two-week maintenance period for all institutions,

•    Create a...

State regulators recently issued examiner guidelines for implementation of the Federal Reserve Board’s Regulation Z loan originator compensation restrictions.

The rule, which went into effect on April 6 following a brief court stay,...

Federal Reserve Board Governor Sarah Bloom Raskin called the necessary rebuilding of the contractual framework for the mortgage market a “massive challenge” for lawyers in the mortgage finance field.

In an October 4 speech to the...

The Federal Reserve is beefing up its guidance on Regulation II (Debit Card Interchange Fees and Routing). On September 13, the Fed published “Debit Card Interchange Fees and Routing — A Small Entity Compliance Guide.” The Fed prepared the...

The Federal Reserve and New York’s Department of Financial Services announced enforcement actions September 1 that enable Goldman Sachs to sell Litton Loan Servicing LP to Ocwen Financial Corporation.

The Fed announced a formal...

The Federal Reserve Board issued a proposed rule August 31 seeking comment on procedures for securities holding companies (SHCs) to elect to be supervised by the Fed.

Under Dodd-Frank Act section 618, an SHC may seek supervision by the...