Corporate governance

Small lenders across the country, including Forte Bank in Wisconsin, promoted and recruited chief executives in recent weeks.

The bank now offers personal loans up to $50,000 to State Farm customers, the latest step in its effort to broaden its customer base by teaming up with other companies.

Royal Bank of Canada executives said they plan to start originating more mortgages in the United States, and they indicated that they may ditch the City National Bank brand.

The Connecticut bank disclosed that Nasdaq waived a shareholder approval requirement so it could urgently raise more than $50 million. Patriot also said its finance chief would step down.

The Mississippi lender said regulators have signed off sooner than expected on its $103.6 million acquisition of First Chatham Bank. The bank's CEO and deal advisers said the speedy approval bodes well for future M&A.

Georges Elhedery aims to double down on HSBC's investment-banking operations in Asia and the Middle East after exiting key businesses in the U.S. and Europe.

The number of shareholder proposals appearing in banks' proxy statements is down significantly this year, due to Trump-era regulatory changes and new concerns about political blowback.

The Connecticut bank said its newly minted president, Steven Sugarman, successfully led a private placement and signed a long-term employment agreement that makes him a potential CEO. David Lowery, current chief executive of Patriot, plans to step down in April.

Federal Reserve policymakers said that the U.S. economy remains on sound footing, despite recent setbacks, and that two interest rate cuts lie ahead. Bank stocks advanced on hopes for loan growth and more M&A.

The Independent Community Bankers of America wants Congress to eliminate tax exemptions for credit unions with more than $1 billion of assets, scaling back an earlier request that would have targeted the entire credit union sector.

The U.S. arm of Spanish banking giant Banco Santander is offering a high-yield savings account through its digital bank, Openbank, to eligible Verizon customers, a move that will introduce Santander to millions of potential new customers.

Bankers' surveys of commercial clients have found that corporate decision-makers are less concerned about adverse tariff effects than nervous investors.

Disaster relief is capturing a large share of philanthropic giving from banks such as Truist Financial and Western Alliance Bank.

The regional bank, which hired a commercial banking team away from Citizens Financial Group, has identified growth opportunities not only in the Garden State, but also in Pennsylvania and Texas.

NuMark Credit Union said it would buy Lemont National Bank. After a record-setting 2024, it's only the second such credit union-bank combination so far this year.

Forecasters on an American Bankers Association panel predict continued economic growth this year, though they say President Trump's tariffs have created new inflation and recession risks.

Small lenders across the country filled leadership positions, including Orrstown Financial Services and QCR Holdings.

The Los Angeles-based parent company of Bank of Hope expects to complete its acquisition of Honolulu-based Territorial in April. The $79 million deal faced challenges when an investor group made a competing bid.

Concentrating in narrow specialties can attract both relatively low-cost deposits and low-risk loans in an era of high interest rates and economic uncertainty, lenders say.

The Connecticut bank expects to report a $9.5 million net loss for the fourth quarter, but it said it's made headway in its efforts to cultivate investors and bolster its capital levels.