Laura Alix

From hiring to health care, Vice Chair Anne Finucane shares details about Bank of America’s pledge to address vital needs in minority communities.

Executives argue the rollouts will largely focus on new markets and work in tandem with digital banking efforts.

Lenders are cautioning not only that second-quarter provisions might exceed the spike seen earlier this year, but also that credit costs could be elevated into 2021 if the economic slowdown drags on or fears of a second coronavirus wave are borne out.

The venture with Goldman Sachs represents the first time Amazon has let a third party control the underwriting process of one of its financing offerings.

Leaders of companies including Citizens, Comerica and Truist offered more upbeat assessments of loan demand and credit quality than they have in recent weeks. But others warned of weakness in key sectors such as energy and real estate, and said forbearance policies may be hiding potential pitfalls.

Lenders have a role to play in the national reconciliation that must follow the recent racial unrest — providing greater access to capital for African Americans and other underserved groups so they can build wealth, activists said at a panel discussion hosted by Berkshire Bank in Boston.

James Smith, who recently completed his gradual transition out of banking, was spearheading a public-private economic development plan for Connecticut when the coronavirus pandemic hit. The crisis made the need for the plan greater — and the job harder.

The funds will be used to support housing, job training and aid for small businesses in communities that have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic.

Customers' increased use of digital channels during the pandemic could compel the Minneapolis company to rethink its branch strategy, CEO Andy Cecere said.

Demand has soared for mental health services as bank employees put in long hours, supervise kids while working at home and endure personal crises. Citi, BofA, Fifth Third and others are getting creative to help them decompress during the pandemic.

Lawmakers are working to head off a wave of pandemic-related personal credit downgrades. But there are bigger problems with how credit risk is assessed that are harder to solve.

The lender will pay $65 million in restitution and forgive nearly $500 million in auto debt to settle charges that it steered subprime borrowers into risky loans.

Often overlooked in narratives about essential workers, branch and call-center employees are responding to challenges posed by the COVID-19 crisis. They’ve processed emergency-relief loans late into the night, coached customers unfamiliar with mobile banking and made house calls to elderly account holders.

Regional and midsize banks, which continue to trail the biggest banks in digital engagement, could attract younger consumers by reaching out with more advice about financial basics, according to J.D. Power.

Funneling fees from emergency loans to feed the hungry. Supporting psychological counseling for health care heroes and financial advice for the poor. Backing retrofits of customer operations to produce protective gear for front-line medical personnel. Bankers and financial educators have tossed out the traditional playbook to help clients and communities in crisis.

The lenders are bracing for spikes in delinquencies or defaults on loans to a sector heavily punished by social distancing measures.

Queued-up loans. Extra bankers. Government tweaks to promote fairness. None of these precautionary measures has been enough for the second round of the Paycheck Protection Program to avoid the pitfalls of the first.

The pandemic won’t halt the Cincinnati bank's plan to open about 100 branches in the Southeast, but features could be added to accommodate social distancing.

Citizens, Regions and others say business investments initiated before the COVID-19 pandemic, including technology improvements and new consumer offerings, are on track.

The biggest lenders seem to have handled the corporate rush for cash heading into the economic shutdown caused by the coronavirus pandemic. But their ability to collect is as uncertain as the economic outlook for the next year.