Think Spring

"THINK SPRING." Indeed. That message from a fire station notice board captures how I feel about this frigid winter in New York. We've recently had some warmer, sunny spells that sparked optimism about better days ahead. And things are looking up. In my case, literally -- over the weekend, I saw the brightest stars in the sky that I can remember for a long time. I'm looking forward to a season of growth and renewal.

Onwards:

The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau dropped five enforcement actions against financial services companies accused of wrongdoing under the prior administration, including a major case against Capital One. Separately, a $100 million pot of money intended for student loan borrowers is sitting in limbo.

A JPMorgan Chase executive told thousands of employees he wanted "more hustle" days after the bank's CEO Jamie Dimon scorned staff pushback against its five-day return-to-office policy.

Goldman Sachs added its President John Waldron to its board of directors after giving him a retention bonus, cementing his position as a likely successor to CEO David Solomon. Separately, the bank dropped a section on "diversity and inclusion" from its annual report.

TD Bank appointed a compliance monitor for its anti-money laundering program after U.S. regulators hit the lender with $3 billion in penalties last year.

Wells Fargo is scrapping its goal of achieving net-zero emissions across its financed portfolio by 2050 as banks rethink their sustainable lending activities.

In this week's field report, here's another quote from Library Way on the sidewalk leading to the New York Public Library:

My calendar is filling up. And we're covering Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaking in New York on Thursday.

Have a great week.

Lananh