The banking industry right now is facing many changes. Innovation is rocketing ahead, competition is increasing, customer demands are shifting, regulatory pressures are mounting. Against all of that, banks must be able to remain profitable. (ABA Banking Journal)

Pushed higher by rising bond yields, mortgage rates reached their highest levels since July. According to the latest data released Thursday by Freddie Mac, the 30-year fixed-rate average jumped to 3.94 percent with an average 0.5 point. It was 3.88 percent a week ago and 3.47 percent a year ago. (Washington Post)

In a show of resilience, the American economy grew at a solid pace in the latest quarter despite the impact of the hurricanes in Texas and Florida. The nation’s gross domestic product, a key indicator of economic strength, expanded at an annual rate of 3 percent in the third quarter, the Commerce Department reported this week. (New York Times)

Bank leaders are constantly on the lookout for ways to increase their non-interest income, and one option is to switch debit card programs. But change isn’t easy. We talked to three bank executives who recently moved to a different debit card program and asked about the snags and successes they encountered in the process. (ABA Banking Journal)

As the push for faster payments in the U.S. intensifies, and as a variety of businesses enter the payments space, banks continue to have a "key role" in facilitating payment innovations, Federal Reserve Governor Jerome Powell said in a New York speech last week. (ABA Banking Journal)

On Tuesday, the Senate voted to overturn the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s controversial final rule on arbitration by a vote of 51 to 50. With a tie-breaking vote by Vice President Mike Pence, the Senate exercised its authority under the Congressional Review Act to reject new federal regulations. (ABA Banking Journal)

With every headline, financial markets get jolted as investors guess whether President Donald Trump will re-nominate Yellen to the helm of the U.S. central bank or opt for a more hawkish successor. But on monetary policy, Yellen’s strategy of gradual rate hikes, and ultra-slow balance sheet runoff, will be difficult for any newcomer to quickly change. (Bloomberg)

The White House is close to naming a community banker to the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, National Economic Council Director Gary Cohn told ABA Annual Convention attendees in Chicago last week. The candidate is currently receiving a federal background check, one of the final steps before the nominee can be announced. (ABA Banking Journal)

Size alone is not sufficient to identify systemically important banks, according to a report issued by the Treasury Department’s Office of Financial Research. The report recommended that all but the largest global systemically important banks be assessed for systemic risk with a modified version of a multifactor approach used in Europe. (ABA Banking Journal)

Republicans set an aggressive timeline for passing legislation to overhaul the nation’s tax code, putting pressure on senior lawmakers and the White House to resolve major disagreements about the effort before a Wednesday deadline to introduce a bill. (Washington Post)

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