Corporate governance

At a time when many lenders are shying away from an industry hit hard by the pandemic, State Bank of Texas is going all in.

When Jane Fraser takes the reins of Citigroup in February, she will have to tackle the company’s cards slump, lagging performance metrics and challenges presented by employees’ return to the office.

The bank said the move will provide more flexibility raising capital and more options when it comes to pursuing bank acquisitions.

Michael Corbat won praise for turning the page on the financial crisis and for advancing gender equity in the workplace. But after eight years at the helm, he has failed to deliver the returns that investors have come to expect of Wall Street banks.

The pandemic and economic downturn upended most institutions' advertising plans for the year, and many credit unions have had to adjust not only their messaging but also the loan products they are promoting.

Citigroup named Hassan to the new role as part of a move to combine its marketing and branding divisions.

Bartow Morgan Jr., who ran Brand Banking when it was sold to Renasant, also plans to raise $150 million to expand the seller's products and services.

The travel industry was hit extremely hard by the coronavirus pandemic. WEX, a payments processing and financial technology solutions organization with offerings for corporate travelers, felt the shockwave first hand.

Institutions considering new technologies must ask themselves what they're looking for not just from a product but from a partner.

A plan to merge the $5.5 million-asset credit union into Cal-Com FCU will provide additional services for members while also easing the process of replacing several employees who plan to retire this year.

The New Jersey company will add three branches in the northern part of the state as part of the transaction.

The company is selling $355 million of Paycheck Protection Program credits to The Loan Source, a nonbank lender that is also buying PPP loans from three other banks.

The purchase-and-assumption transaction, if approved, would become the first credit union-bank merger in Alabama.

The Vermont-based credit union received the OK from federal regulators to add 650,000 potential members to its FOM, an increase of 15%.

A state judge deciding a dispute between Spencer Savings and an investor said the mutual must get an independent review before switching from a savings association to a savings bank. The ruling may complicate mutuals' efforts to make more business loans.

Pathways Financial's acquisition of Standard Register FCU increases its foothold in the Dayton market.

CIT inherited the business with its purchase earlier this year of Mutual of Omaha Bank.

The deal continues Sound's push into markets north of its Tacoma headquarters.

When the coronavirus pandemic forced teachers and students to move classroom learning online this year, school districts and educators suddenly faced a raft of challenges around handling new expenses for tools needed for cyber education.

After dropping for the past two years, reputation scores are once again rising, thanks largely to the goodwill banks have earned by helping customers and employees weather the coronavirus outbreak.