Heading into the year, U.S. banks were facing pressure to pay higher rates to their depositors. But they could not have anticipated just how important deposits would soon become.

Executives at America's largest banks are making rosier predictions about the financial health of U.S. households than they were a year ago, when their forecasts proved to be overly pessimistic.

Overall merger-and-acquisition activity proved modest across the banking sector, but several prominent deals were reached. Read on for details of the year's biggest transactions.

EWA programs are not loans, no matter how loudly critics insist that they are. They provide a vital source of liquidity to hardworking families.

Banks cannot shrug off the impact of sudden account closures as inevitable collateral damage involved in fighting money laundering.

The deadline for a $28 million deal between Bancorp 34 and CBOA Financial was pushed later into 2024 after Bancorp 34, the buyer, announced it would restate third-quarter results to reflect a significant loss tied to a worsening commercial real estate credit.

Michelle Moore, Tim Spence, Ankit Bhatt, Patrick Sells, Dontá Wilson and Allan Rayson have moved up, moved on or tackled new technology projects since they were recognized by American Banker for their leadership in innovation in recent years.

Here is a highlight of 10 great American Banker Magazine features from the year. Topics range from redlining to the Most Influential Women in Fintech.

The CFPB needs to think bigger — much bigger — when it comes to writing rules for Section 1033 of the Dodd-Frank Act.

In American Banker's Leaders Forum, our journalists interviewed top executives from across the banking and fintech sectors as well as regulators who keep them in line.

The Canadian bank didn't admit liability in the settlement, which is set to go before a court for approval in February.

Walmart adds BNPL to self-checkout via Affirm, Uber integrates with payment firms Brex and Ramp, Fulton Financial announces next president and more in the weekly banking news roundup.

Bank investor Kenneth Lehman and investment firm Castle Creek are providing the funds to the Virginia-based bank, whose fintech friendly strategy has gotten it in trouble with regulators. The bank's stock has sunk 70% this year.

Corporations and trial lawyers have long fought over whether consumers should be forced into arbitration to resolve their complaints. Now there's a new wrinkle: It's becoming harder for aggrieved customers to even get to arbitration.

Provident Financial in Iselin initially anticipated completing its deal for Oak Ridge-based Lakeland Bancorp in the second quarter. Now as it waits for regulatory approval, Provident says the process will stretch into spring 2024.

Funding pressures moderated in recent months, but loan charge-offs climbed. With festering concerns about a vulnerable economy, the potential for elevated credits costs could loom large over the upcoming bank earnings season.

The banks' resistance to changes being recommended by the Federal Housing Finance Agency do not bode well for their future or that of the industry.

The vote by workers in a New Mexico branch is the first union victory at a megabank in decades, though unionization efforts at another Wells branch took a step back.

Lincoln Savings Bank has tapped Sean Willett, chief administrative officer at Financial Institutions, as its next leader after a six-month search.

The Cincinnati, Ohio, bank also promoted three other top executives to new roles. All of the changes will be effective in early 2024.