Jackie Stewart is the executive editor of American Banker Magazine. Previously, she covered breaking news, community banks and mergers and acquisitions for American Banker before being named as the managing editor of the Credit Union Journal. After graduating from Northwestern University in 2006, Jackie taught for two years in the Bronx, N.Y., through Teach for America.
Bankers who hold political offices can become advocates for their communities while boosting the profile of their banks. Still, they must be mindful of the time constraints and potential conflicts of interest that come with having dual jobs.
The adoption of new anti-fraud card technology is prompting more community banks to consider supporting Apple Pay.
A key deadline for anti-fraud card technology is prompting more retailers and banks to take a hard look at mobile payments platforms.
OFG Bancorp in San Juan, Puerto Rico, has expanded its ATM network 34% by adding 85 machines throughout the territory.
Community Banker University will provide courses on topics ranging from wealth management and call reports to information technology and compliance. The platform will use a variety of channels such as in-person training and webinars.
Farm banks have enjoyed several years of robust loan volume, but declining farm income has them on guard for increases in delinquencies and more eager to use government-guarantee programs.
The usefulness of in-store branches is a hotly debated topic in the banking industry. But some institutions are successfully landing customers and increasingly valuable deposits through such locations.
A spike in security breaches might make such protection more appealing to customers, even though regulators are taking a closer look at banks that offer such add-on products.
As the implementation of new anti-fraud measures for debit and credit cards looms, community banks must work with their processors and sharpen their customer service skills to ensure a smooth transition.
Smaller banks need to develop detailed marketing plans to reach out to cardholders, while also working with their processors to prepare for the transition to EMV cards.
Banco Popular got the most press for agreeing to buy the failed Doral Bank. But the deal also revealed one surprise winner, First BanCorp, while another institution, OFG Bancorp, was shut out of the process.
Popular and FirstBank gained critical branches and deposits in a region where growth is hard to come by. Some observers said it could also benefit the island to have one less competitor.
The Northeast has always been a competitive market for deposit gathering. Loan growth and the potential for rising interests are forcing banks in the region to find new ways to bring in low-cost liquidity.
Doral Financial suffered another setback as a Puerto Rican court ruled that the company is not entitled to a $230 million refund tied to overpaid taxes.
The acquisitive Bank of North Carolina is using a new iPad and desktop app to help its frontline employees make product recommendations to customers.
The Connecticut lender overhauled its enterprise risk management system after becoming frustrated with inefficient spreadsheets.
Sunwest Bank in Irvine, Calif., has been sending employees to Africa and South America since 2011 to do philanthropic work. While such projects could help recruit Millennials, industry experts also see challenges selling foreign missions to employees and customers.
Several Korean-American banks are entering markets and businesses designed to target mainstream clients and other ethnic groups. Such moves are viewed as a way to improve the bottom line as revenue growth proves daunting.
The Puerto Rican bank faces a deadline to raise capital or sell itself. With recapitalization a challenging prospect, here's a look at how other scenarios could play out.
Community banks, on average, increased the size of their loan portfolios by 15% in the third quarter from a year earlier, though the numbers reveal a slowdown from prior periods.