News
CDBA Member Virginia Community Capital tied for first place in the 2016 CDFI Prize Competition for their innovative new social enterprise, Direct Investing for Good. This new organization will provide financial services for foundations interested in investing directly in CDFIs.
Rep. Patrick McHenry (R, NC-10) recently introduced legislation to create a regulatory structure for the emerging technology in the financial industry. McHenry warns that if the US government does not work quickly and decisively that the US will suffer the potential of losing a global competitive edge in FinTech.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)'s ability to regulate the banking industry and ensure adequate protections for consumers' nationwide is under scrutiny as Republicans and Democrats alike consider a new future for the agency amidst the Wells Fargo false account scandal.
Homeownership is a crucial step to building wealth, but for many in rural communities, this component of the American dream can often be very elusive. Consumer-focused banks that provide home loans to homebuyers are scarce and rural families are more likely to be impoverished than the rest of the families, with about half of them spending 50% of their monthly income on rent, according to the Housing Assistance Council.
The fight for fair lending got a big boost on Aug. 31 when a federal court rejected a payday loan collector’s attempt to evade consumer laws. The decision against CashCall, a California-based online payday and installment lender, upheld the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s authority to investigate and fine lenders for unfair, abusive or deceptive practices. The court ruling is a key step in a legal battle that began nearly three years ago.
The B Corp Best for the World List recognizes those companies creating the most impact for a better world. Sunrise Banks and Beneficial State Bank were both named as honorees.
The Federal Reserve's accommodative monetary policy and post-crisis regulatory structure is having an unintended and counterproductive effect: it's making it harder for ordinary Americans to get ahead. That argument, detailed in a paper released Monday by Federal Financial Analytics, analyzed academic research from across the globe to assess the impact of the prolonged ultra-low interest rate environment on asset prices. The conclusion is that while those accommodative policies have spurred economic activity in some areas, it has primarily resulted in the growth of assets like equities and securities that are disproportionately held by the wealthy.
To the editor: Your article describes efforts to investigate Wells Fargo for predatory practices. This latest fine against Wells Fargo highlights industry-wide practices that have resulted in billions of dollars in fines in recent years. But, as a banker focusing on low-income communities, I don’t believe these fines are eliminating unwanted behaviors.
Carver Federal Savings Bank CEO Michael T. Pugh was recently interviewed on The Karen Hunter Show, which airs on SiriusXM Urban View, Channel 126. During the interview, Mr. Pugh spoke with Karen Hunter about the challenges and opportunities that Black-managed banks face and how important a bank’s Community Reinvestment Act (“CRA”) Rating is to determining whether that bank is providing loan capital to the communities it operates in.