JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo and four other big banks are facing new restrictions on their mortgage operations after a federal regulator determined the banks did not do enough to fix problems in their foreclosure practices in the aftermath of the financial crisis, the New York Times reported today. The banks had promised in 2011 to change the way they handled foreclosures in a consent order with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), a top bank regulator. The OCC said yesterday that three large banks — Bank of America, Citigroup and PNC Financial — had complied with the 2011 order and an amended version in 2013 and no longer faced restrictions. But JPMorgan, Wells Fargo, Santander, HSBC, US Bank and EverBank will face new limitations on their ability to acquire mortgage servicing rights from other banks. However, they will not face restrictions on the servicing of mortgages that the banks issue themselves. The OCC also said yesterday that it was handing over to states about $280 million that it had received as part of a 2011 settlement related to the financial crisis.
