BankThink

Community development financial institutions and minority-owned banks have long faced funding challenges, but billions of dollars of investment — spurred by Black Lives Matter protests — have given them an opportunity to increase lending by a factor of 10. Here’s how they can do it.

Research shows that unbanked recipients of the Advance Child Tax Credit want bank accounts, while those with banking relationships are eager for advice on how to use the money.

Despite clear evidence to the contrary, the mortgage insurer continues to insist that credit unions have the same risk profile as nonbank lenders. It’s now threatening to exclude nearly a quarter of credit unions from being qualified issuers of the securities it backs.

This is not a world for small ideas, and the sooner many narrowly focused upstart financial technology companies come to grips with that reality, the better.

The Federal Reserve's decision to reexamine the Durbin amendment's Regulation II raises a host of concerns for banks and credit unions over the processing of purchases made online.

Banks should favor the development of U.S. data rules that let them freely share consumer information with, and receive it from, fintechs. The alternative, where banks merely send data to third parties for a fee, would be less competitive and less beneficial for all parties.

Criminals' efforts to steal identities and take over accounts have become increasingly sophisticated. Banks must upgrade their mitigation processes, which can be held back by antiquated systems and organizational silos.

Community development financial institutions could do more lending in low-income neighborhoods if policymakers relaxed accounting rules, increased government support and encouraged more investment from hedge funds and other nonbank lenders.

In his new book “The Day the Markets Roared,” the noted economist Henry Kaufman gives a spellbinding account of the interconnected forces of political power, influence and the lessons the market learns from history.

The pandemic created a new expectation that banks should show empathy for customers in crisis. Let’s keep it that way.