BankThink

The U.S. is the only industrialized nation without mandated paid parental leave, but innovative leave policies are an opportunity to attract and retain employees in a highly competitive industry.

Wall Street JournalSeeking retail: Marketplace lenders, rebuffed by institutional investors who stopped buying their loans, are hoping retail investors will provide a more permanent source of capital. Several new funds allow retail investors to buy into the business. Investors are attracted by loans that yield over 6%. But there's a catch, warns the Wall Street Journal: "They might find themselves locked into loans due to the illiquid structure of these funds, even as they shoulder fees that are high relative to other investments."

Application programming interfaces have grown so quickly, they're no longer the future of payments. They're the present.

If modified, the cybersecurity standards in New York State are a step in the right direction to protect banks and consumers.

A lot of analytical horsepower is being spent on what will happen to the markets after the election, but it seems to make more sense to talk about what will not change for consumers, investors and financial institutions.

A lot of analytical horsepower is being spent on what will happen to the markets after the election, but it seems to make more sense to talk about what will not change for consumers, investors and financial institutions.

Receiving Wide Coverage ...Another hit: Wells Fargo has agreed to pay $50 million to settle a class-action lawsuit in which it was accused of overcharging homeowners for appraisals ordered after the borrowers defaulted on their mortgages. The plaintiffs allege they were charged $95 to $120 for a service that cost the bank $50 or less. Under the proposed settlement, Wells will mail checks, averaging $120 each, to more than 250,000 customers whose home loans were serviced by the bank between 2005 and 2010.

While much of the focus on chip cards is rightly placed on security, there's also a relationship building factor as consumers become aware of the benefits.

Similar to a bank system merger or migration, a blockchain core conversion project would likely take multiple years and cost tens, if not hundreds, of millions of dollars depending on the size of the bank.

The founder and president of Anthemis Group gets an early look at all types of fintech innovation. She's noticed that, no matter how different the ideas are, there is one underlying commonality in this sector: it's lacking something profound. Here are some small changes that could make a big difference.