Policy and Regulation

The regulatory relief bill would raise the SIFI threshold to $250 billion of assets and allow mortgages held in portfolio to be counted as "qualified," among other items, but it is far less sweeping than institutions had hoped.

A bill that would ease Basel III capital requirements on commercial real estate loans could level the playing field between depository and nonbank lenders and spur more construction lending if it passes in the Senate.

Impac Mortgage Holdings' nonqualified mortgage origination volume increased 248% year-over-year in the third quarter as the company accumulates loans for a planned securitization next year.

Hopes that tax reform might soften a weakening of the mortgage interest deduction were quickly dashed as the GOP plan landed a double punch on the incentive cherished by the mortgage and housing industries.

Mark Calabria, the chief economic adviser to Vice President Mike Pence, said the administration is focused for now on more pressing issues than GSE reform, including addressing housing damage from recent hurricanes.

New Residential Investment Corp. may seek to accelerate the process of transferring more than $100 billion in mortgage servicing rights it agreed to buy from Ocwen for $400 million.

A GAO determination has effectively nullified a 2013 leveraged lending guidance. But that leaves the future uncertain about what, if anything, regulators will devise to replace it — and how banks should treat such loans in the meantime.

Barclays and the Justice Department, engaged in a legal battle over the suspected fraudulent sale of mortgage securities a decade ago, have revived discussions about reaching an out-of-court settlement, according to people with knowledge of the situation.

The accord is the latest development in investigations by governments across the globe into banks’ manipulation of benchmark interest rates.

British regulators are touting the success of their so-called regulatory sandbox. Their American counterparts have been unable to agree on a comprehensive scheme to foster innovation.