Compliance

But the Regions wealth management unit refuses to roll over.

House Counsel: 28% Rate Unlikely

House Financial Services Chairman Barney Frank urged four of the nation's top banks to adopt principal writedowns on second-lien mortgages to allow borrowers to keep their homes.

Congress suspended the required minimum distributions for IRA, 401(k) and other retirement plan investors age 70-1/2 last year, since people’s balances took such a hit the year before and many wanted to remain invested in hopes of a rebound. As the market has, indeed, rebounded nicely, Congress is likely to reinstate the RMDs this year, experts say.

While many workers in this time of economic instability and rampant layoffs are afraid to rock the boat by questioning their employers' decisions, recent lawsuits over high 401(k) fees have empowered some workers to ask their employers to offer lower-cost choices.

Says Banks Will 'Skim the Cream’

A little-noticed provision tucked into regulatory reform legislation by the Treasury Department is causing a furor among large institutions, which say it would effectively ban all derivative transactions between banks and their affiliates.

As the Senate Banking Committee considers reform of the nation’s financial regulatory system, the American Insurance Association is seeking to amplify the distinctions between insurers and other financial services firms.

The Independent Community Bankers of America sent a letter Thursday to top Senate Banking Committee leaders raising concerns about rumored plans to name the Treasury Secretary as head of a proposed systemic risk council.

Just over a year after the height of the financial crisis, Citigroup Inc. is a fundamentally different company than it was when it needed billions to stave off a collapse.

UBS will have to purchase up to $200 million in auction rate securities from investors who were not covered in UBS’ initial agreement with state and federal regulators.

The Securities and Exchange Commission is expanding its New York office staff of 360 people by 33, or nearly 9%, in an effort to better regulate hedge funds and brokerages. The SEC will hire 18 additional people in enforcement and 15 in examinations.

The Treasury Department released a legislative outline Wednesday offering more details on how it would implement a ban on certain risky activities and cap financial institution size.

The original goal of providing uniform protections for all consumer credit is getting lost to lawmakers' preoccupation over where to place a new regulator.

Issue is less where it is housed than how much power it has

As the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Sheila Bair continues to push for an agency for the financial protection of consumers as part of an overhaul of the financial system, a group of women executives are headed to Washington D.C. to speak to a group of senators about why the agency would be important for women consumers and business leaders.

Broker-dealers can offer financial advice that isn't in the best interest of their clients, and the insurance industry wants to keep it that way.

WASHINGTON — Where to put a proposed new consumer protection division appears to have become a game of musical chairs.

On Wednesday's split 3-2 vote along party lines, the Securities and Exchange Commission approved new restrictions on short sales that aim to improve investor confidence in the markets.

WASHINGTON — Regulators were picked apart Friday by members of two House committees, who blamed them for a dramatic drop in lending and urged them to ease up on bankers.