Energy industry

The Dallas bank’s troubled energy loans reached a nearly two-year high as crude prices plummeted.

While his focus is on organic growth in Texas and California, Curt Farmer says he would consider a deal in those states if the right one comes along.

With loan volumes slowing across the industry, some say a focus on loans for renewable energy could be one way for credit unions to pick up some of the slack.

If the no-premium agreement announced by First Horizon and Iberiabank this week is a sign that sellers’ asking prices will come down, then Regions might reconsider its anti-M&A stance, a company executive said.

The Dallas company inherited the loan relationship from a bank it bought in 2017.

The rise in prices caused by the attacks on Saudi Arabian oil installations should help banks recoup some losses from the 2016 downturn. Harder to gauge is the impact the price volatility will have on U.S. energy production and, in turn, loan demand.

Nandita Bakhshi, CEO of Bank of the West, has pushed the bank's environmental commitments further, including $1 billion in clean energy financing over the next five years.

The Cincinnati bank recently expanded its renewable energy banking business to include investment banking services. Its ambitious goals demonstrate the sector’s growing appeal to regional and community banks.

The Texas bank said it was setting aside higher provisions for credit losses as private investments are drying up in a volatile oil and gas market.

A sharp disagreement between foreign and U.S. regulators is emerging on how far banking supervisors should go in asking financial institutions to stress test their loan and investment portfolios for any risks associated with climate change.