New York

JPMorgan Chase agreed to pay $995 million to resolve claims by Ambac Financial Group that it was duped into insuring mortgage bonds backed by shoddy loans, paving the way for approval of a much larger settlement between the bank and institutional investors stemming from the global financial crisis.

American International Group announced $3.6 billion in new costs to fill a reserve shortfall and said it will hold an initial public offering for its mortgage insurer and sell an adviser network as Chief Executive Peter Hancock seeks to boost returns and protect his job after criticism from activist investor Carl Icahn.

A JPMorgan Chase unit has reached an agreement to pay $1.42 billion to resolve claims it took advantage of its status as Lehman Brothers Holdings' primary lender to unfairly extract cash and position itself ahead of other creditors in Lehman's bankruptcy.

Signature Bank in New York has filed a plan to sell about $299 million in common stock.

BankUnited in Miami Lakes, Fla., reported a double-digit percentage increase in fourth-quarter profit, citing growth in loans and fee income.

The financial technology accelerator Startupbootcamp FinTech in New York has formed partnerships with Deutsche Bank, a law firm and a venture capital firm to advise its participants.

At least five regional banks on Thursday discarded concerns about the global economy, stocks, interest rates and credit quality, forecasting loan growth for the rest of this year.

KeyCorp believes it can surpass cost-cutting projections tied to its purchase of First Niagara Financial, while BB&T believes market duress could present it with more acquisition opportunities.

Bank of New York Mellon, under pressure from activist investors to boost its share price, reported fourth-quarter earnings that beat analysts' estimates as higher rates lifted revenue and non-interest expenses fell.

Signature Bank in New York reported a record profit in the fourth quarter as strong loan growth more than offset continuing weakness in its portfolio of taxi medallion loans.