Growth strategies

Toronto-Dominion Bank agreed to buy the U.S. brokerage Cowen Inc. for $1.3 billion in cash, bulking up its presence in American capital markets just months after striking a historic deal to expand its retail operations in the country.

Citigroup is planning a 500-person hiring spree over the next three years for a new wealth division catering to junior employees at private equity offices, consultancies and accounting firms, betting those clients will someday join the ranks of the ultrawealthy. 

Citigroup is requiring some of its least-profitable trading clients to post more collateral and is even dropping some of them to help boost returns in its markets business.

A combination of higher organic loan growth and fee-based revenue streams powered top-performing banks in 2021.

The top 20 banks with assets of $2 billion to $10 billion outshined their peers in loan and revenue growth while maintaining pristine credit quality in 2021, according to a new ranking. Can they do the same this year as recession clouds gather?

State Bankshares in North Dakota was the top performer in the $2 billion to $10 billion asset class in 2021, according to Capital Performance Group. Strong commercial lending, a national mortgage business as well as regional wealth management and insurance units offer diverse sources of growth, a company executive says.

Elliott Investment Management is holding discussions with PayPal Holdings over an agreement that would see the activist investor have a hand in determining the future direction of the company, according to people familiar with the matter. 

Banco Santander was eliminated from the bidding process for Citigroup’s Mexican unit, opening the way for a takeover by a local rival.

The New York megabank has a long way to go on its path toward simplification of its business, but some early investments — such as technology upgrades in the treasury unit, which serves commercial customers — are starting to pay small dividends.

The boss of the U.K. digital bank Monzo Bank said he’s targeting growth rather than immediate profit during a turbulent time for the fintech industry, after nearly doubling annual revenue while widening losses.

The Nashville bank has recruited a veteran commercial lender in Asheville who had worked with First Horizon, and it has hired four more bankers in Chattanooga.

It took 100 years, but St. Landry Homestead Federal Savings Bank decided on a drastic name change — to Catalyst Bank — to end confusion with a local rival and signal its loftier aspirations.

A new and larger finance industry is emerging — one in which traditional institutions aren’t nearly as dominant as they used to be.

Goldman Sachs Group plans to anchor a new office tower in Dallas that would hold thousands of employees, part of the bank’s expansion beyond its Manhattan base.

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce expects its U.S. commercial banking and wealth management business to provide the fastest sales growth over the next three years.

VersaBank, which recently announced a deal for a tiny Minnesota bank, says volatility will increase demand for its loans. “Traditionally, we’ve grown rapidly when our point-of-sale financing partners have trouble raising financing,” said CEO David Taylor.

The North Carolina bank’s wealth arm now operates in nine of the 10 largest U.S. markets.

John Madigan, a Citigroup veteran, is leading one of five new private-client banking groups at Signature Bank. The moves are designed to enable the company to expand its footprint throughout metro New York.

The Pittsburgh company is adjusting the structure of a unit that has a national reach following the acquisition of most of BBVA’s U.S. operations. PNC has also named Jennifer Lee as the private bank’s head of U.S. markets.

PayPal Holdings will let users transfer certain cryptocurrencies to other customers, exchanges and external wallets, a new service that’s part of the company’s effort to boost use of its app.