Joe Adler

In September, the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision announced new standards to raise required common equity ratios to 7% by 2019, and have regulators implement the new capital rules by 2013.

With more time to rebuild its coffers and failed-bank losses easing, the FDIC Tuesday abandoned an across-the-board premium hike slated to go into effect next year.

The government seized three Midwest banks late Friday, costing the Deposit Insurance Fund just over $500 million.

Under existing rules, a bank with a 4 or 5 Camels rating cannot make such payments to parties terminating their affiliation with the institution.

Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Sheila Bair said Wednesday the growing robo-signing scandal was symptomatic of the poor incentives that marred the securitization market, but she opposed a universal freeze on foreclosures.

Seeking to rebut concerns the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. would use its new resolution powers over large firms to play favorites with creditors, the agency released a proposal Tuesday designed to severely limit who could receive extra relief in a failure.

The move underscored the difficulty of implementing the Dodd-Frank regulatory reform law, which requires regulators to act independently and in concert with other agencies.

The FDIC is soliciting the banking industry's help in devising a new resolution system — even as companies try to get an idea of what the new system will look like.

The lone failure over the last three weeks may have offered a respite from the usual series of collapses on Friday nights, but most observers caution against predictions that bank closures may be slowing.

Banks and thrifts had their best performance in almost three years during the second quarter, earning $21.6 billion, a 16% jump from a quarter earlier, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. said Tuesday.

While it's clear that tighter rules for securitization are on their way, varying approaches to the issue by different agencies are making bankers and issuers uneasy.

The Federal Reserve Board, the sole bank holding company regulator for decades, is about to experience a pretty new concept: a teammate.

Illinois regulators closed the $493 million-asset Palos Bank and Trust Co. late Friday, the 110th failure of the year.

The FDIC will soon post bi-weekly records of closed-door meetings it holds with bankers and other stakeholders regarding regulatory reform, the agency said Thursday.

The proposal, which would only apply to banks supervised by the agency, said institutions should give customers the chance to opt out of overdraft programs for their checking accounts and any automated clearing house transfers, as well as monitor overdraft usage to avoid unfair consumer fees.

Even as they begin dropping credit ratings as a supervisory source, regulators signaled Tuesday they are worried about abandoning their use altogether, suggesting that potential alternatives are not much of an improvement.

Five bank closures in four states Friday cost the federal government an additional $334 million in losses.

As federal regulators begin implementing regulatory reform, at least one agency plans to step up its disclosure of private meetings with industry insiders.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. is not waiting for regulatory reform's enactment to develop plans for a new resolution system.

Three more banks failed late Friday, at an estimated additional cost to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. of $285 million.