USAA's win vs. Wells, BB&T-SunTrust's green light, GSE reform: Top stories of the week

November 27, 2019 2:37 PM

Timeline of Mitek, USAA remote capture deposit battle

USAA won $200M from Wells Fargo in patent fight. Will others be on the hook?
The remote deposit capture tech at the center of the dispute is used by 6,500 institutions. That may mean other institutions will have to pay licensing fees to USAA.

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Fed, FDIC sign off on BB&T-SunTrust megamerger — with a catch

The regulators approved the deal after nine months of consideration, but the Fed hit SunTrust with a consent order tied to "unfair and deceptive" business practices from 2013 to 2017.

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Ghost funding and sandbagging: Wells Fargo's sales tactics on trial

A lawsuit filed by a New Jersey branch employee who was fired in 2016 includes detailed allegations about the pressure that front-line workers faced to meet monthly sales targets. The case is scheduled to go to trial in February.

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Three takeaways from regulators' approval of the BB&T-SunTrust merger

The smooth and relatively short process should be encouraging to other big banks that are eyeing deals. But their window of opportunity may not last long.

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Don't believe doom and gloom on Fannie, Freddie

There's been chatter that investors are shying away from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgage-backed securities because Congress may not enact housing finance reform. Be skeptical of those claims.

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How much should banks fear a Democratic victory in 2020?

COLUMBIA, SC - OCTOBER 27: Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Democrat from Massachusetts and 2020 presidential candidate, speaks during the 2019 Second Step Presidential Justice Forum in Columbia, South Carolina, U.S., on Sunday, Oct. 27, 2019. The forum asked each participant to focus on what's next now that the First Step Act has been passed. Photographer: Logan Cyrus/Bloomberg

Logan Cyrus/Bloomberg

The financial policy views of progressive candidates atop the presidential field are sure to worry bankers, but it would be difficult for any new president to implement sweeping regulatory changes.

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U.S. banking regulators taking harder look at climate change

U.S. banking regulators' views on climate change.

In recent months federal regulators have been speaking out on the risks that extreme weather events pose to the financial system, something their European counterparts have been doing for some time.

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Citigroup's Corbat warns banks: Don't become 'the dumb utility'

Michael Corbat, chief executive officer of Citigroup Inc., listens during a House Financial Services Committee hearing in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Wednesday, April 10, 2019. The chief executives of some of the U.S.'s biggest banks should get ready for hostility as they're about to serve as political-theater targets at a House committee hearing, analysts say. Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg

Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg

In a discussion about partnerships with technology and fintech firms, Citigroup CEO Michael Corbat said banks need to be careful not to give away too much, particularly the client-customer relationship.

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Dems' new tack on gun control: Make banks police sales

Representative Jennifer Wexton, a Democrat from Virginia, waits for the start of a House Financial Services Committee hearing with Tim Sloan, president and chief executive officer of Wells Fargo & Co., not pictured, in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Tuesday, March 12, 2019. Scandals at Wells Fargo erupted in 2016 on the revelation that bank employees opened millions of potentially fake accounts to meet sales goals. Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg

Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg

A recent bill would require banks to provide data on suspicious firearms transactions as part of anti-money-laundering efforts.

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OCC offers road map for banks to bypass 'Madden' ruling

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency contends that Industry Bancshares is "in troubled condition," citing outsized vulnerabilities to changes in interest rates and the company's reliance on "funding sources that may not be available in the event of further financial stress."

Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg

The 2015 decision posed new legal challenges for institutions trying to sell loans to third parties, but the federal regulatory agency proposed steps Monday for banks and debt parties to evade state interest rate caps.

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