House Republicans held a subcommittee hearing on reforming bank merger M&A, laying the groundwork to counter Biden administration efforts to make it more difficult for mergers to be approved.

Consolidation has slowed since the pandemic, but UMB's agreement to buy Heartland Financial — the largest deal in three years — is one of several merger announcements in the past two weeks. Talks among other potential buyers and sellers are said to be picking up.

Congressional Review Act resolutions are ramping up ahead of the 2024 election cycle. Experts say that, although none are likely to become law, the resolutions are still powerful messaging and political tools.

The JPMorgan Chase CEO took aim Tuesday at the proposed Basel III endgame rules, hindrances to mergers and bureaucratic burdens. "I would love to have a more productive relationship with regulators, but I think it takes conversation," Dimon said.

Many legal experts think the Supreme Court will rule in favor of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in a case challenging its funding. Such a ruling would unleash a flurry of litigation that has been on hold pending the outcome of the constitutional challenge.

According to the Federal Reserve Board's latest financial stability report, persistent inflation and policy uncertainty are the primary worries for banks. Survey respondents expressed heightened anxiety over murky policy outlooks due to geopolitical turmoil and rapidly approaching domestic elections.

The CFPB has dissolved the Office of Supervision, Enforcement and Fair Lending and eliminated the job of associate director in a move that impacts how it designates nonbanks for supervision.

The Federal Reserve chair's comments coincide with the spring meeting of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group in Washington. They also come as groups like the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision are being scrutinized.

The Federal Reserve Board governor and frequent regulatory critic says it would be appropriate for the U.S. to deviate from the agreed-upon international standards to reflect "unique characteristics" of the American banking system.

The memorandum creates channels for sharing information about nonbanks between the Federal Housing Finance Agency and the Conference of State Bank Supervisors.