Jim Dobbs

Albuquerque-based One Hope Financial Institution will focus on small-business owners who have been historically excluded from traditional banking services.

The two banks are now targeting May 27, three months later than their previous goal. The transaction, which would create a top-six U.S. bank by asset size, was originally expected to be completed last fall.

Adelphi Bank in Columbus was given the green light by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to open.

Bank executives are slowing their momentum across commercial and consumer lending segments, a Federal Reserve report finds. Many still expect growth this year, but not as much as in 2022.

Thomas Zernick will become chief executive of the Florida bank when Anthony Leo retires at the start of 2024.

Executives cited uncertainty created by surging interest rates, heightened regulatory scrutiny and the potential for a recession.

The bank, which is beleaguered by digital-asset portfolio forced loan charge-offs that led to a loss in the third quarter and for the full year, climbed to a net income of $2.7 million for the fourth quarter.

The Radnor, Pennsylvania-based financial technology company made an unsuccessful bid to buy a bank. Now it is shifting into expense-reduction mode.

Indexes show heightened expectations for a recession and souring loans. But executives are upbeat about middle-market businesses and overall job growth.

The Oklahoma bank grew fourth-quarter loans at a steady rate and said its regional economy is solid. But it is closely watching the impact of rising senior-care costs.

With the $7.5 billion acquisition, the Minneapolis bank bolstered its customer base in the nation's most populous state by more than 1 million. Earnings accretion from the combination could offset slower loan growth this year.

Members of the American Bankers Association's Economic Advisory Committee expect gross domestic product to stall in 2023. Other surveys show a modest contraction. Lenders say sentiment among their borrowers also points to a slight slowdown.

The Ohio bank posted strong fourth-quarter earnings and, while it expects activity to ease some, it envisions continued strong loan growth in the year ahead.

Lending momentum and robust interest income powered earnings, but the Georgia bank expects deposit cost increases to weigh on its net interest margin.

The Pittsburgh bank posted a solid profit and said that it expects continued loan growth. But the pace of business expansion could slow alongside an economic downturn.

Investors worry the intersection of rising interest rates and festering inflation could conjure a recession and drive loan losses. This would keep stock prices suppressed, but share buybacks and merger activity could counter that.

Eric Bergevin, president and CEO of Integrated Financial Holdings, was killed in the Jan. 7 accident, the company said.

Christopher Oddleifson plans to step down from the Massachusetts bank in February. The company named Jeffrey Tengel, most recently an executive at M&T Bank, as successor.

A new Risk Management Association survey found that 84% of small lenders cite credit quality as a leading worry for 2023 because of the likelihood of a recession.

Rising interest rates and the potential for weakening economic activity could result in moderating loan demand in the new year. Some bankers are already being more selective in their lending.