Fostering financial well-being among the country's fastest-growing demographic group is essential to the future of the American economy. And, not incidentally, it's also good for business.

Friday's deal for Premier Financial ends a five-year M&A hiatus for the Wheeling, West Virginia-based company while marking its expansion into Michigan.

ChoiceOne Financial Services would pay about $180 million to acquire Fentura Financial in a bid to expand in Detroit's suburbs. The deal would create a bank with more than $4 billion of assets.

The $73.5 million all-stock deal, slated to close early in 2025, would create a bank with more than $3 billion of assets.

A rising number of check fraud cases involving counterfeit checks is compounding the already-serious problem of fraud in one of the oldest payment methods widely available.

Old National Bancorp's earnings remained strong as it continued its expansion into the southeast with its recent $344 billion acquisition of CapStar. Executives said they foresee similar growth for the remainder of the year.

The credit card giant increased its allowance for credit losses by more than $800 million following the termination of a partnership with Walmart.

Financial institutions such as U.S. Bank and USAA are seeing high engagement with their customers via the mobile app. Experts say banks need to do a better job of capitalizing on this interest.

Federal banking agencies asked the Fifth Circuit to lift an injunction on new community lending regulations, arguing that the court misinterpreted the scope of the Community Reinvestment Act's reach.

Arrested four times for blocking the entrance to Citigroup, a veteran climate protester wonders why more rank-and-file bankers don't make common cause with activists trying to prevent the funding of fossil fuel development.

See which bank topped American Banker's annual ranking of the best-performing midsize institutions.

The top-performing banks with between $10 billion and $50 billion of assets boasted relatively strong loan portfolios and expense control.

The Detroit-based auto lender has been dealing with an imbalance in deposit costs and loan yield since rates rapidly rose. Now, the bank's fixed-rate loans from before are maturing.

The credit card company is seeing fewer customers fall behind on their payments. But with lower-income consumers still being pinched by inflation, Synchrony isn't loosening its lending standards.

The credit card giant says its proposed acquisition of Discover would facilitate a bevy of community development activity and philanthropy. But some public advocacy groups are skeptical.

Congress needs to take immediate action to reform policies that foster this trend and ultimately subsidize banking consolidation on Main Street, writes Rebeca Romero Rainey, president and CEO of the Independent Community Bankers of America.

The tech giant is enabling users to pay by holding smartphones together, potentially cutting into the market for Zelle, PayPal and Venmo.

In recent surveys conducted by Javelin Strategy & Research and Insider Intelligence, consumers gave the bank's app high marks. Many small-seeming improvements explain the ascent.

Royal Bank of Canada reorganizes its executive leadership ranks; pending startup BankMiami gets approval from Florida's Office of Financial Regulation; Rize Credit Union's Julio Jimenez-Wenz joins Nevada Commission on Minority Affairs; and more.

After its planned sale to a larger competitor fell through, the renamed bank plans to expand into new markets, starting with St. Louis.