The parent companies of Cape Cod 5 and Fidelity Bank have agreed to combine under a multibank holding company called Mutual Bancorp. The bank units would keep their current names and operate independently but pool resources to improve efficiency.

The top five banks have an average reputation score among customers of 84.1 in 2023.

Eighteen banks announced agreements to sell themselves last month. It was the most active month for bank deals since July 2022.

The banking industry, which has a long history of sponsoring sporting events, is pouring more money into the live-music industry, according to a new report. Music-related events and properties make up 39% of the sector's sponsorship portfolio, up from 25% two years ago.

Boston-based Eastern Bankshares says its premium on the sale of Eastern Insurance Group will help fund the acquisition of Cambridge Trust and build a wealth management powerhouse. But some analysts point out more revenue is being sacrificed than gained.

The lawsuit takes issue with the agency's 2022 guidance on nonsufficient funds fees, a hot-button topic in the banking industry. The FDIC is asking a judge to dismiss the case, arguing that the plaintiffs lack standing to sue.

Denver-based InBank will expand into Georgia and Arizona, part of a wider plan to seize market share and build what one executive called a top-tier SBA lender.

The combination would create a company with $27 billion of total assets, $18 billion of loans and $22.6 billion of deposits.

The service was created to meet institutional clients' needs for real-time payments.

Bankers largely support expanding government-backed farm loan programs, and in general support continued funding for crop insurance. But politics is making swift passage of a traditionally uncontroversial bill challenging.

New-car inventories were rising after years of supply-chain woes. But the stalemate between auto manufacturers and their employees could change that dynamic — and cause knock-on effects for lenders.

The Japanese technology conglomerate withdrew its application to the National Credit Union Administration on Sept. 5, marking its fourth failed attempt to establish a financial institution in the U.S.

USAlliance Federal Credit Union names Harry Zhu as its next president and chief executive; HSBC launches business account-opening portal in 20 countries; Swift enters next phase of its central bank digital currency solution and more in the weekly banking news roundup.

Carrie Tolstedt, the company's former retail banking chief, was sentenced to three years of probation, including six months of home confinement. A federal judge detailed why she denied the stiffer sentence sought by federal prosecutors, who wanted to send a message about the consequences of white-collar crime.

A movement is afoot to transfer the job of the Federal Home Loan banks to the Federal Reserve. This would be a disaster for small lenders.

Despite an industrywide rough patch, EverBank still sees promise in the niche business line. The Jacksonville, Florida, company has hired a pair of prominent industry experts to lead a new division tasked with serving investment funds.

Carrie Tolstedt, scheduled to be sentenced Friday for her role in the company's phony-accounts scandal, has already paid for her crime and should receive three years probation, her attorneys argue in a sentencing memo. Prosecutors have recommended a year in prison.

Fraser has a plan to reduce the number of management layers at Citi, shrink its workforce, speed up decision-making and give herself more control of the bank's five core businesses. "It's going to make some of our people very uncomfortable," she said.

The five-year deal puts Citizens' brand name in front of New Yorkers, as the bank continues to expand after buying HSBC's East Coast branches as well as Investors Bank last year.