Ebrima Santos Sanneh

After years of discussion among regulators, the Federal Reserve Board has approved changes to its CRA rules that will base compliance exams on where lending occurs rather than branch locations. The updates — set to take effect in January 2026 — also emphasize lending in lower-income areas as well as community development loans and investments.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. issued a proposal requiring larger banks to implement a three-line-of-defense risk management model and increased board independence in response to observed weaknesses in corporate governance during past financial crises and recent bank failures.

Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Martin Gruenberg said despite earlier proposals for reforming deposit insurance following this spring's bank failures, congressional interest in major reforms has waned and prospects for legislative changes are dim.

The Department of Justice reached a $9 million settlement Wednesday with Westerly, R.I.-based Washington Trust over race-based lending discrimination and redlining in the state, saying the bank denied lending services to Black and Hispanic neighborhoods from 2016 to 2021.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Board's Vice Chair Travis Hill urged his fellow regulators Thursday to delay implementing new banking regulations until interest rates stabilize, saying rushed rules amid precarious economic conditions could impact consumer lending.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. acknowledges in a new report that it didn't adequately monitor First Republic Bank's uninsured deposits, interest rate risk sensitivity and rapid growth — and as a result left the bank vulnerable to contagion.

The FDIC is launching joint ventures to market $33 billion of commercial real estate loans from the failed Signature Bank, prioritizing its statutory obligation to preserve low-income housing availability.

Banks have offered a more tepid critique of regulatory proposals to expand resolution planning and long-term debt for regional banks, suggesting the industry is intent on curbing July's Basel III capital proposal instead.

Banking and credit union regulators encouraged compassionate treatment of customers in Hawaii communities hit by wildfires. They also vowed to grant expedited approvals of temporary banking facilities, be flexible in compliance matters and provide other support to financial institutions.

The California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation says in a new report that it failed to keep pace with Silicon Valley Bank's rapid growth. But it placed blame on the Federal Reserve, too.