Sales of fixed annuities through all channels totaled $19.4 billion in the second quarter, a jump of 18% from the first quarter, according to a report by Beacon Research, which tracks fixed annuity sales.

In the clash of the two largest U.S. brokerages, Bank of America Corp.'s Merrill Lynch is generating more profit with fewer people than the business Morgan Stanley formed by buying a controlling stake in a venture with Citigroup Inc.'s Smith Barney.

Shares in Swedish investment bank HQ AB plunged 84% Monday after its banking license was revoked by regulators over the weekend, pushing the bank into involuntary liquidation.

Any decline in home equity balances could be offset by higher demand for other types of consumer loans. The worry is that only borrowers with blemished credit will take out home equity loans, increasing the risk for banks and credit unions.

Over the past year, the focus of several banking policymakers has been how much the regulatory pendulum might swing back toward the industry’s liking. That theme will likely continue in 2018.

A regulatory relief package is likely to come out of the Senate in the new year, and lawmakers could follow it up with a housing finance reform push. But the midterm elections could cause some reform initiatives to grind to a halt.

The simplest of mechanisms, having evolved over time, has now become a trending solution, a beacon of a brighter time and an essential service provider in an hour of need, says PPS' Tessa Unsworth.

Data that mimics the original set is part of coronavirus vaccine trials, and also has ramifications for mapping financial services metrics, says Aite's Ginger Schmeltzer.

The pandemic and social unrest made 2020 one of the most challenging years in recent memory, but there is much the industry can learn from the past 12 months.