Growth strategies

The nation's largest bank has already completed many of the branch closings that can boost its earnings, leaving it with "less and less accretive opportunities to consolidate," according to a top executive.

Bank failures last spring forced many startup businesses to shift where they store their cash. JPMorgan Chase appears to be the top beneficiary, but other banks say they are just as eager to reel in deposits and do more business with the innovation economy.

The deal for SimplyBank, scheduled to be completed in the second quarter, would give First Financial in Terre Haute, Indiana, additional branches in Tennessee and its first presence in Georgia.

The San Antonio bank reported a 14% increase in noninterest expenses and a 7% jump in loans. "We're not trying to be successful by shrinking," said CEO Phil Green.

The Dallas company, which is in the midst of a four-year business overhaul, is facing a margin squeeze in the coming quarters. But even as analysts express skepticism, company executives aren't budging from the profitability goals they set two years ago.

The consulting giant's annual global banking review highlights a stark trend: Over a seven-year period, more than 70% of the net increase in financial assets ended up not on U.S. banks' balance sheets, but instead at insurance and pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, in private capital markets and elsewhere.

Peoples Financial Services has agreed to pay $129 million of stock for FNCB Bancorp. Peoples' CEO Craig Best would lead the combined company for a year after the merger closes, and then Gerard Champi, FNCB's current chief, would take over.

As part of the changes, the Spanish bank is combining individual countries' retail and commercial banking businesses under a new global unit, which will be headed by Daniel Barriuso, and creating a new digital consumer bank area that will be led by Jose Luis de Mora.

Instead, the Canadian bank will try to ramp up its current strategy, which includes growth in commercial lending and technology upgrades, as well as streamline management. 

After taking incremental steps to bolster its wealth management business, the Rhode Island bank is preparing to roll out a broader strategy focused on high-net-worth clients.