Laura Alix

Bank of America will help Cornell University expand an online training course aimed primarily at Black and Hispanic women who want to start their own companies, as part of the bank's $1 billion racial justice commitment.

Technology imperatives, weak loan demand and the need for increased efficiency could put pressure on dozens of regional banks to join forces with rivals.

A former Fifth Third executive recently accused the company of failing to deliver on a promise to make him president because he’s in his mid-50s. The case offers important lessons in hiring and succession planning as the banking industry cuts costs and seeks out younger, digital-savvy managers.

Fifth Third Bancorp promoted Chief Risk Officer Jamie Leonard to succeed Tayfun Tuzun, who will become chief financial officer of BMO Financial Group on Jan. 1. Both companies made other executive moves at the same time.

The Toronto company says it will begin by gathering data on the greenhouse gas emissions of borrowers — a critical first step toward stress testing for climate events.

Executives from a half-dozen major financial institutions avoided detailed commercial lending forecasts and gave a mixed outlook on consumer credit at an industry conference. And they called on Washington to pass an aid package targeted at the most troubled business sectors as soon as it can.

Lenders pushed back against the notion that city dwellers' pandemic-driven flight to suburbia would hurt them. They say fewer landlords have sought deferrals as vacancy rates remain low and rent collections have stabilized.

The New York State Department of Financial Services says banks and credit unions under its supervision should limit loan concentrations in vulnerable geographic areas, avoid overexposure to fossil fuel and other legacy businesses and develop financial disclosures detailing climate-related risk.

The Florida company has created a series of programs to coach leaders on motivating employees and avoiding conflict.

Donald Felix will join the Rhode Island company in January as head of national banking. He recently was responsible for developing a personal finance management strategy for JPMorgan Chase’s consumer bank.

Leaders at the 85 institutions that made the eighth annual ranking have found ways to navigate crises (there have been plenty this year) while also bolstering employee morale.

Spence’s promotion to president could signal that the Cincinnati banking company is grooming him as a potential successor to Chairman and CEO Greg Carmichael.

The Cincinnati company, one of just a handful of lenders to reduce its cushion against bad credits in the third quarter, was grilled by analysts who suggested it was being too optimistic about the long-term effects of the pandemic recession.

Banks have managed to steer around trouble spots in energy, hotel and mall-related credits. But fears of further deterioration, an eviction wave or more job losses are keeping lenders circumspect.

Citigroup is now the third, and largest, U.S. financial institution to offer the Mastercard True Name feature, which lets customers use their preferred name, rather than their legal name, on credit and debit cards. The cards are targeted specifically for transgender and nonbinary people, who often face outsized financial hardship.

Citigroup is now the third, and largest, U.S. financial institution to offer the Mastercard True Name feature, which lets customers use their preferred name, rather than their legal name, on credit and debit cards. The cards are targeted specifically for transgender and nonbinary people, who often face outsized financial hardship.

Strong mortgage and capital markets activity helped offset credit costs and one-time items in the third quarter at Citizens Financial Group. In a period of low rates, CEO Bruce Van Saun says he’d like to buy more fee-generating businesses.

The Minneapolis company says the majority of branches earmarked for closing have already been shuttered for months due to the pandemic. Some of the savings will be plowed back into digital expansion.

Even more so than activist investors, customers and a new generation of employees are driving banks to back environmental, social and governance reforms, executives said during a Women in Banking roundtable hosted by American Banker.

The fees have helped banks recoup costs of free or low-cost checking accounts for decades, but they can penalize low-income customers and drive them away from banking. Is there a better way?