Bank stocks surged on Thursday after financial regulators announced they would ease the financial crisis-era Volcker Rule. The Volcker Rule generally prohibited banks from engaging in proprietary trading and from having certain relationships with hedge funds and private equity funds. The rule change will provide banks greater flexibility in sponsoring funds that provide loans to companies, allowing investments in qualifying venture capital funds. JPMorgan, Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, and Wells Fargo all traded up more than 3% on the news. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.