Allissa Kline is a Buffalo, New York-based reporter who writes about national and regional banks and commercial and retail banking trends. She joined American Banker in 2020 and previously worked for more than a decade at Buffalo Business First, where she covered banking and finance, insurance and accounting. Kline started her journalism career at the Observer-Dispatch in Utica, New York. She graduated from Colgate University and the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University.
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Royal Bank of Canada is rolling out AI across its businesses in an effort to become more efficient and generate more revenues. The Toronto-based bank recently created an internal AI accelerator that directly reports to CEO Dave McKay.
March 19 -
Three years after acquiring Bank of the West, BMO is preparing to open 130 branches in the Golden State, where it thinks it can achieve density and critical mass. The Toronto-based bank also plans to open 15 branches in Arizona.
March 17 -
The Alabama-based regional bank plans to open 135 to 150 branches over the next five years, while closing the same number. Regions' decision to accelerate its timeline by two years comes as large and regional banks try to capture more market share in the Southeast.
March 16 -
Billy Beale, who was hired to clean up Virginia-based Blue Ridge Bankshares after its failed foray with fintechs, has left the $2.4 billion-asset company. His successor is Harry Golliday, who was named interim CEO.
March 13 -
A New York state bill would reduce the barrier for minority-bank and community-bank participation in the state's long-standing Banking Development District program.
March 12 -
At an industry conference Tuesday, bankers said that an extended war with Iran will result in adverse economic conditions, including inflation.
March 10 -
Chief economists at large and regional banks predicted ongoing inflation, in part because of the anticipated surge in oil prices as a result of the Iran war. The forecast from the American Bankers Association's Economic Advisory Committee did not account for the disappointing U.S. jobs report on Friday.
March 6 -
Banco Santander's bid to buy U.S. regional bank Webster Financial could face surprise challenges following a dustup between President Trump and Spain's leaders over the war in Iran.
March 4 -
Brady, Key's chief information officer since 2012, resigned Monday due to "personal health considerations," the Cleveland-based bank said in a securities filing. Chief Financial Officer Clark Khayat will assume her duties.
March 2 -
Charles "Chuck" Parcher will replace Dennis Shaffer as president and CEO of the Sandusky, Ohio-based community bank. Shaffer is set to retire in late August.
March 2 -
The financial advisory firm initially sought an industrial loan charter back in 2020. It's the third company to receive the necessary approvals this year, joining General Motors and Ford.
February 27 -
At an investor day in London, Banco Santander executives laid out the Spanish company's new financial goals, including a goal to improve a key profitability metric in the U.S. The pending acquisition of Webster Financial in Connecticut is part of the strategy to achieve higher returns, they said.
February 25 -
Banks that have more than $50 billion of assets but are smaller than the megabanks scored the lowest on customer satisfaction, according to the American Customer Satisfaction Index's 2026 finance study. The industry's overall score remained stable.
February 24 -
In 2025, compensation for the chief executives at four of the largest U.S. banks jumped by between 10% and 28%. The increases reflect strong financial performances, the achievement of certain milestones and the competitive landscape, a compensation consultant said.
February 11 -
The activist investor HoldCo Asset Management said Monday that it doesn't plan to pursue proxy battles this spring at either Key or Eastern. It had been agitating publicly over the banks' M&A strategies.
February 9 -
Prosperity Bancshares finalizes the second of three acquisitions it's announced since July; Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation appoints a new chief information security officer for its American operations; Huntington Bancshares, Third Coast Bancshares and Heritage Financial completed acquisitions; and more in this week's banking news roundup.
February 6 -
Unlike some of its expansion-minded regional bank peers, Montana-based First Interstate is reconfiguring its business model to be smaller and more focused on relationship banking. The blueprint is the work of CEO Jim Reuter, who joined the bank 15 months ago.
February 5 -
The Spanish banking giant is accelerating its U.S. growth plans with the pending acquisition of Webster Financial in Connecticut. The combined entity will be the second-largest foreign-owned bank operating in the country.
February 4 -
The Spanish banking giant, which has been trying to grow its U.S. business, plans to acquire the Connecticut-based parent company of Webster Bank.
February 3 -
The Long Island-based bank returned to profitability during the fourth quarter of 2025. The results mark "a significant milestone" in the bank's turnaround plan, CEO Joseph Otting said.
January 30
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