Large U.S. banks that clear the next round of stress tests with sufficient capital will be allowed to resume dividend increases at the end of June, the Federal Reserve said, signaling an end to pandemic-era restrictions that dragged on financial stocks last year.
Any continuing limits on stock buybacks also will be lifted for lenders that perform well in the exams, the Fed said in a statement Thursday. That means “most firms” will be free of the emergency curbs on payouts to shareholders, it said.
