Recent News
"Today, the Biden-Harris Administration announced the indefinite extension of the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and Federal Financing Bank (FFB) Risk-Sharing program (FFB Risk-Sharing) as part of a fact sheet on actions to boost housing supply and lower housing costs. The National Association of Affordable Housing Lenders (NAAHL) strongly supports the Administration's action to indefinitely extend FFB Risk-Sharing program.
'The FFB Risk-Sharing program is a proven lever to boost the construction and preservation of affordable multifamily rental housing, which we have a... Read more
"Lawmakers averted a partial government shutdown after the Senate on Thursday cleared a two-step continuing resolution to allow final appropriations work to wrap up in the coming weeks.
The Senate voted 77-13 to send the short-term spending measure to President Joe Biden's desk. The House earlier Thursday passed the bill (HR 7463) on a 320-99 vote under the suspension of the rules, which requires a two-thirds majority of lawmakers present and voting. . .
The vote will set up a first tranche of full-year spending bills that the House is expected to vote on next Wednesday: the... Read more
"Today, Congresswoman Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY) and Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) introduced the Survivor Financial Safety and Inclusion Working Group Act, a bill aimed at increasing support for survivors of intimate partner violence within the financial system.
The bill would create an interagency working group comprised of the federal financial regulators and relevant stakeholders, including a representative of historically underserved communities. The working group would be tasked with collecting data on the impacts of economic abuse of survivors carried out through regulated... Read more
"House Democrats led by Rep. Maxine Waters, ranking member of the House Financial Services Committee, are asking regulators to update their merger review procedures.
The lawmakers said they are concerned about how long the regulators are taking to update their merger guidelines in light of President Biden's executive order from 2021 ordering agencies to revamp the bank merger review process."
"Mitch McConnell, the longest-serving Senate leader in history who maintained his power in the face of dramatic convulsions in the Republican Party for almost two decades, will step down from that position in November.
McConnell, who turned 82 last week, announced his decision Wednesday in the well of the Senate, the chamber where he looked in awe from its back benches in 1985 when he arrived and where he grew increasingly comfortable in the front row seat afforded the party leaders."
"The Southeast has become distinctly more prosperous in just a few years — part of a shift in the geography of economic distress in the U.S., according to new data reported first by Axios."
"To ensure the United States continues to lead the world in financial innovation, the Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, Patrick McHenry (NC-10), reintroduced the Financial Services Innovation Act. This legislation establishes federal regulatory 'sandboxes' through Financial Services Innovation Offices (FSIOs) at federal financial regulators, allowing entrepreneurs to test new products and services without sacrificing critical consumer protections."
"Jack Henry™ (Nasdaq: JKHY) announced today that Legacy Bank & Trust has doubled its asset size in two years by implementing a differentiated business strategy and revamping its technology stack to meet new growth areas and complex needs. The bank grew from $800 million assets in the first quarter 2022 to $1.7 billion today.
The 117-year-old Springfield, Missouri-based bank has a long history in rural markets. Over the last decade, the leadership team saw market needs and opportunities for growth in three new niche areas of business: affordable housing, new markets tax credits... Read more
"A New York State program is funding community-based organizations to help low-income families gain financial literacy. News 4's Lynda Baquero reports."
"The murder of George Floyd in the spring of 2020 pushed discussions about racial equity to the center of national attention. Though sparked by murderous police brutality, the wave of protests across every major American city that summer explicitly extended beyond the critique of state-sponsored racial violence. Protesters and pundits expanded their lens to include wider structural racism across American society – and throughout the US economy.
The resulting movement, broadly associated with Black Lives Matter, challenged all sorts of institutions to take action in support of... Read more
"The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) today reported on the first set of results from the newly updated Terms of Credit Card Plans survey. The survey data reveal that large banks are offering worse credit card terms and interest rates than small banks and credit unions, regardless of credit risk. In fact, the 25 largest credit card issuers charged customers interest rates of 8 to 10 points higher than small- and medium-sized banks and credit unions. This difference can translate to $400 to $500 in additional annual interest for the average cardholder."
"Carlos Naudon leads Ponce Bank, a Minority Depository Institution (MDI) and Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) founded in the Bronx in 1960. Ponce Provides banking, loans, and education to underserved communities throughout NYC while supporting dozens of not-for-profits through its Ponce-de-Leon Foundation. Ranked #1 for community investment by Mighty Deposits, Ponce is committed to mission-driven banking and ranked #1 in housing focus among its CDFI peers while making 70% of recent mortgages to first-time homebuyers."
"The nation's economy is doing remarkably well. Inflation is coming down, unemployment remains low and growth is robust. One glaring exception, however, is housing.
According to the National Association of Realtors, it is more difficult for first-time buyers to purchase a home than at any time in two generations, short-circuiting the path to homeownership for millions, bogging down the housing market and hampering the nation's economic growth."
"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