Recent News
"JPMorgan aims to put 70% of the U.S. population within a 10-minute drive of a branch. At Bank of America, the goal is 80% of the population within a 15-minute drive.
That also means the banks have to learn new ways to capture customers at various income levels. Federal law requires banks to do business in low-income areas, and both JPMorgan and Bank of America say they are committed to having 30% of branches in those tracts."
The American Bankers Association (ABA), Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA), the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and local Texas trade associations filed a lawsuit against the Federal Reserve, FDIC and OCC for "exceeding their statutory authority and acting arbitrarily and capriciously with their recent amendments to the Community Reinvestment Act rules. The lawsuit asks the court to vacate the Final Rules, and the groups will also seek a preliminary injunction pausing the new rules while the court decides the merits of the case."
Related, CDBA recently hosted a webinar, "Why... Read more
"Today, Governor Josh Shapiro is delivering on a major budget priority, opening the application window for small diverse businesses across the Commonwealth to apply for a total of $10.5 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding.
Grants ranging from $2,500 to $10,000 will be awarded to historically disadvantaged businesses that were in operation on or before March 17, 2020, and were impacted economically by COVID-19. All applications submitted between February 5 and February 23, 2024, will be considered for funding."
On January 31st, the House passed a bipartisan tax bill... Read more
The CFPB has proposed a rule that would prohibit NSF fees in certain circumstances:
"When a consumer's attempted withdrawal, debit, payment, or transfer transaction amount exceeds the available funds in their account, currently, a financial institution might decline the transaction and charge the consumer a fee, often called a nonsufficient funds (NSF) fee.
The proposed rule would prohibit NSF fees on transactions that are declined instantaneously or near-instantaneously—that is, those declined with no significant perceptible delay after the consumer initiates the transaction... Read more
"John Pitts, head of policy for Plaid, argues a new CFPB open-data proposal could transform the financial services industry. He says bankers, many of whom are skeptical of the plan, could see significant opportunities, including a greater ability to attract new customers."
"The cost to overdraw a bank account could drop to as little as $3 under a proposal announced by the White House, the latest effort by the Biden administration to combat fees it says pose an unnecessary burden on American consumers, particularly those living paycheck to paycheck.
The proposed change by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau would potentially eliminate billions of dollars in fee revenue for the nation's biggest banks, which were gearing up for a battle even before Wednesday's announcement. Exactly how much revenue depends on which version of the new regulation is... Read more
"House and Senate negotiators have agreed on a roughly $78 billion framework for a package of tax benefits aimed at businesses and low-income families, according to a source familiar with the negotiations.
The two sides expect to roll it out this morning.
The question now is whether Senate Finance Chair Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and House Ways and Means Chair Jason Smith (R-Mo.) can build enough support to get their deal through both chambers. It's iffy. More on that below.
First, the details. Here's [some of] what's expected to be in the proposal, according to the source.
Graham Steele, Assistant Secretary for Financial Institutions
"Over the past few years, the field of community finance has been transformed both by the historic scale of federal investments and policies focused on supporting equitable economic growth. During the Biden-Harris Administration, the Treasury Department has focused on unlocking the economic potential of financially underserved communities across the country. Secretary Yellen has outlined an economic strategy called 'modern supply-side economics,' which calls for, among other actions, boosting economic productivity by... Read more
"Black households are less likely to own their home compared to white households, which contributes to the broader Black-white housing wealth gap. But closing the homeownership rate disparity may not fully address the racial wealth difference. Even when they achieve homeownership, Black households are more likely to live in properties considered to be in inadequate condition."
"Today, the Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, Patrick McHenry (NC-10), and Ranking Member Maxine Waters (CA-43) announced the formation of the Committee's bipartisan Working Group on Artificial Intelligence (AI), led by Digital Assets, Financial Technology and Inclusion Subcommittee Chairman French Hill (AR-02) and Subcommittee Ranking Member Stephen F. Lynch (MA-08).
The bipartisan AI Working Group will explore how artificial intelligence (AI) is impacting the financial services and housing industries, including the development of new products and services, fraud... Read more
"The Senate failed to override President Biden's veto of a resolution to nullify the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's small-business data collection rule.
The Senate on Wednesday voted 54-45, falling short of the two-thirds majority needed to override the president's veto last month of a Republican-led resolution to gut the small-business data collection rule under the Congressional Review Act."
"As part of our mission to make the U.S. economy stronger and the financial system more stable for all segments of society, the New York Fed issues periodic reports on credit access for low-income Americans in a series called 'The State of Low-Income America.'
The 2024 report, 'The State of Low-Income America: Credit Access & Housing,' examines low-income households' access to credit, ability to repay loans, and use of mortgage refinancing through Q3 of 2023."
"The federal bank regulatory agencies today jointly issued a overview webinar on the final rule to strengthen and modernize regulations implementing the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA).
The nearly one-hour video provides an overview of the new CRA rule issued on October 24, 2023, and its objectives. Additional topics in the recording include assessment areas, community development, evaluation framework, performance tests, ratings, data collection and reporting, and applicability dates.
The CRA is a landmark law enacted nearly 50 years ago to encourage banks to help meet the... Read more
"Two years ago, when billions of dollars of equity capital from the U.S. government were awarded to minority banks and community development financial institutions, there was widespread hope that the funding would propel growth at those institutions and eventually help close the racial wealth gap.
Combined with equity investments from the country's largest banks, the massive injection of capital into dozens of minority depository institutions in particular — which have long struggled to build capital with the same success as non-minority banks — was hailed as transformational.
... Read more"A more robust secondary market for loans originated by Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), which specialize in lending to low- and moderate-income communities, would give CDFIs greater access to capital, thus allowing them to make more loans. This is why the Community Development team at the New York Fed is researching the secondary market for loans originated by CDFIs and how that market could be expanded."
The OCC has issued a new set of FAQs related to SSBCI 2.0.
"These FAQs address the following topics:
- Reporting on loans to businesses owned by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals.
- Regulatory treatment for loans using certain SSBCI-supported credit enhancements.
- Considerations for loans in Indian Country.
- Community Reinvestment Act considerations."
"Another high-profile departure from the House Financial Services Committee underscores the fading power of first-hand banking expertise in Congress.
There's a dwindling number of bankers in Congress, a trend that could hurt policymaking on banking-focused committees, experts said. The upcoming retirement of Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer, a former community banker in Missouri, leaves few senior Republicans with direct experience in the industry in high-profile positions on any banking-related committees in the House or Senate."
Southern Bancorp in Little Rock, Arkansas, is among the biggest beneficiaries of the $8.7 billion Emergency Capital Investment Program the Treasury Department unveiled two years ago. Now, CEO Darrin Williams says he's busy putting the $250 million in low-cost equity capital his community bank received to work.
The process has run him a little ragged, Williams admitted in a... Read more
"Jamie Santistevan, senior vice president of risk and compliance for $273 million-asset Native American Bank, N.A., is staying alert to support risk management and compliance. 'First, we're watching changes to the beneficial ownership reporting rules from FinCEN,' he says. 'We're concerned about a lack of specific guidance to both banks and businesses clarifying data collection and reporting requirements.'"