Coronavirus

Unlike in previous years, the results from two different evaluations will be released simultaneously and will include an assessment of bank capital under coronavirus-related scenarios.

Some lawmakers fear that when forbearance plans and enhanced unemployment coverage expire, the consequences for mortgage borrowers still affected by the pandemic will be severe.

If delinquency rates rise, all four stand-alone firms would have a capital shortfall.

The central bank will increase support for credit issued through the Main Street Lending Program while providing midsize firms with more flexibility on the amounts they receive.

About 9% of government-insured loans in forbearance have low equity, which could hamper post-forbearance servicing.

But there was an increase in private-label mortgages in forbearance.

The race to provide coronavirus relief for small businesses is opening new routes to fund payments, including underused credit lines.

One criticism of the CARES Act is that it provides relief only to borrowers with government-backed loans. Bills in New York and California would cover the remaining 30% of homeowners.

The policy comes more than a month after a different agency issued similar guidance for loans backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Fitch Ratings is evaluating all 59 middle-market collateralized loan obligations it rates for potential downgrades, over concerns of the ability of small-business borrowers to support loan payments under COVID-19 stresses.

The firm also predicts that the coronavirus pandemic will delay the GSEs' release from government control.

The changes being sought would benefit both small businesses and banks, which would avoid the cost of servicing many low-yielding loans.

With no way of knowing just how many borrowers will need the mods after the coronavirus forbearance period ends, lenders are deploying artificial intelligence and servicing protocols to tame the ferocious piles of paperwork awaiting them.

Periods of significant loan defaults are tough on banks and force unpleasant choices. Here are steps to evaluate collateral in such uncertain times.

Steps have been taken to manage coronavirus-related liquidity risks to the housing finance system, but some remain, according to Mortgage Bankers Association President and CEO Robert Broeksmit.

The Federal Reserve set up a liquidity facility to help banks meet demand for emergency small-business loans through the Paycheck Protection Program, but it's gone largely unused.

Aggregate numbers for coronavirus-related payment suspensions are showing more consistency as organizations clarify how they handle them, and some consumers' incentives to use them may be declining.

Since March, issuers have tightened their criteria for opening new accounts and closed millions of existing ones in hopes of avoiding waves of defaults.

The general structure of this year’s reviews is unchanged despite the pandemic. But a supplemental analysis of banks' response to the downturn could weigh heavily in evaluating 2020 capital distributions and making adjustments to the tests over the long run.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Boston published details on the terms for lenders and borrowers to participate in the facility intended to provide coronavirus relief funds to middle-market firms.