The Federal Home Loan Bank System saw a 7 percent increase in advances during the second quarter of 2017. The FHLBank’s Office of Finance reported that advances stood at 706.8 billion, at the end of June, up from $660.7 billion reported in the previous quarter. The combined net income for the second quarter was $844 million, up from $812 million the previous quarter. The OF attributes the upswing to an increase in net interest income, partially offset by lower gains on litigation settlements. For the first half of the year net income was $1.66 billion representing a 2.2 percent increase from a year...