Judge approves mortgage settlement

Welcome to the morning roundup. Here's a look at this morning's banking and finance news:

Foreclosure settlement. A federal judge has signed off on the $25 billion foreclosure settlement between big banks and government officials, the Wall Street Journal reports. The judge's approval sets in motion the settlement, which was announced in February and filed in court in March.

Earnings ahead. As companies' first-quarter earnings start to roll out, investors will assess whether slower growth is priced into the stock market - or if disappointing results will spark a larger market decline, Reuters writes. Bank earnings season begins next week, as Wells Fargo & Co. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. release their first-quarter results.

Big losses for the wealthy. The world's 20 wealthiest people lost a combined $9.1 billion this week as worries over the European debt crisis drove the S&P 500 to its largest decline of 2012, Bloomberg reports. Mexico's Carlos Slim, the richest person in the world, saw his fortune slide $1.5 billion during the week.

Tax haven crackdowns. Regulators are forcing the world's tax havens to clean up their acts, the New York Times reports. That creates an opportunity for the banking industry, with some saying the changes will enable financial institutions to sell more wealth management products and enter markets that had previously been off-limits.