Office of Thrift Supervision

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Treasury Officials Hired Prostitutes, Took Gifts

Inspector General report finds shenanigans at regulatory agencies

(Newser) - Treasury Department officials have been reprimanded for hiring prostitutes, golfing with the bankers they're supposed to be regulating, and taking improper gifts, according to inspector general reports spotted by the Hill that were published following Freedom of Information Act requests. Though the identities of all the perpetrators were redacted,...

'Hot Money' Prompts Small Bank Collapses

Deposits from brokers, used to ignite growth, fueled risky loans

(Newser) - A boom-time reliance on something known as "hot money" to boost growth has left many of America's small and regional banks with their fingers badly burnt, the New York Times reports. Brokers provided billions in deposits to ambitious banks seeking to grow fast, but the high interest rates needed...

Obama Proposes More Powerful Fed

(Newser) - President Obama today proposed broad new powers for the Federal Reserve and the creation of new national regulator to ensure against another financial crisis, the Wall Street Journal reports. Under the new plan, the Fed would oversee all components of any banking concern, even its foreign affiliates, and Treasury would...

White House Plans Unified Banking Regulator

New agency would replace hodgepodge of regulators blamed for financial crisis

(Newser) - The Obama administration is working on plans to create a single agency to do the work of the mishmash of regulators who failed to see the financial crisis coming, the Wall Street Journal reports. The new agency, which may be proposed to Congress next month, would strip powers from the...

Schumer Wants Faster Action on Credit Cards

Rules on deceptive practices don't take effect until 2010

(Newser) - Sen. Chuck Schumer is putting pressure on the Fed and the Office of Thrift Supervision to enact restrictions on the business practices of credit card firms more quickly, the New York Daily News reports. The agencies have drafted new rules banning deceptive practices like hidden fees and retroactive rate hikes,...

AIG Regulator: We Should Have Stepped in Sooner

(Newser) - A “multitude of regulators” failed to spot the liquidity risk AIG was piling on until it was too late, and should have stepped in sooner, the Office of Thrift Supervision told the Senate today. A relatively small unit of AIG was piling up credit default swaps, and “no...

'Choose-a-Charter' System Lets Banks Dodge Regulation
'Choose-a-Charter' System Lets Banks Dodge Regulation
investigation
Jan 22, 2009 9:25 AM CST

'Choose-a-Charter' System Lets Banks Dodge Regulation

(Newser) - A loophole in the nation’s banking regulations allows institutions to switch their charters from federal to state, effectively allowing them to decide which regulatory agencies supervise them, reports the Washington Post. Regulatory reform is at the top of Treasury Secretary-designate Tim Geithner's agenda. Of the 200-plus banks that have...

Letters to Dimon: You'll 'Die in 10 Days'

Feds hunt author of threats to bank CEO

(Newser) - A flurry of letters threatening the life of JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon, as well as an Oklahoma City-style bombing of a bank facility, are being investigated by the Postal Investigation Service. ABC News reports a $100,000 reward has been posted for information about the 45-plus letters, all postmarked last...

SEC Probes WaMu Home Loans
SEC Probes WaMu Home Loans
Dec 21, 2007 4:06 AM CST

SEC Probes WaMu Home Loans

Investigators focus on charges that appraisals were inflated

(Newser) - Washington Mutual, one of America's largest mortgage lenders and the biggest savings and loan in the nation, is under investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission, reports the Wall Street Journal. Regulators suspect some WaMu mortgages were based on inflated appraisals. WaMu, bloodied by the subprime mortgage crisis, lost $348...

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