Mortgage lenders are eager to make home loans this year -- but consumers may be more hesitant to borrow.

Big banks stepped up small business lending at the end of 2013, according to the Biz2Credit Small Business Lending Index released Wednesday.

As more community banks look at working with alternative lenders, they must be mindful of the regulatory and reputational risk that can occur if they make a bad referral.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) lost a bid to throw out a lawsuit by the California attorney general alleging that the largest U.S. bank by assets illegally tried to collect debt from about 100,000 credit-card borrowers.

Taylor Bean & Whitaker Mortgage Corp. and Home America Mortgage will pay more than $320 million to resolve allegations that they falsified loan applications, created false documentation, and misrepresented qualifications of applicants in order to secure federally funded insurance for home loans that ultimately defaulted.

TrueCar, Tesla Motors and Uber approach auto lending from sharply different perspectives , but each, in its own way, is dragging the slow-to-adapt industry into the future.

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., China's largest e-commerce website, will ban the sale of Bitcoin and other virtual currencies after the country's central bank tightened regulations in December.

Some banks in downsizing mode are subleasing branches that are too large. Advocates say subleasing can help banks avoid selling branches for cheap; others warns about the cost-benefit of retrofitting a building.

JPMorgan Chase and UBS are among banks that received federal requests for information about trades in mortgage-backed securities after the financial crisis, two people briefed on the matter said.

Reports of young people's financial behavior often treat millennials as an indistinguishable group, but a new survey from PNC Financial Services Group (PNC) has found that their debt and savings patterns vary greatly by age.

In his first major move as head of the agency that oversees Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, ex-Rep. Mel Watt said Wednesday that he will delay a planned fee hike that would have raised the cost of most home loans backed by the government-sponsored enterprises.

The new year will bring an end to big regulatory settlements with banks, a sharp drop-off in the number of branches across the industry, increased use of biometric technology and a breakthrough in banks' use of big data. American Banker editors discuss these and other predictions for the year ahead in banking.

First Niagara Financial Group (FNFG) in Buffalo, N.Y., is laying off employees and shutting down branches as it seeks to retool its retail operations.

TriState Capital (TSC) in Pittsburgh has agreed to buy Chartwell Investment Partners, an investment management firm in Berwyn, Pa.

Old National Bancorp (ONB) in Evansville, Ind., has agreed to buy United Bancorp (UBMI) in Ann Arbor, Mich.

A plan to inject $50 million into U.S. Century Bank has reportedly been called off, leaving the undercapitalized Doral, Fla., bank in limbo.

Peapack-Gladstone Financial (PGC) in Bedminster, N.J., has hired a president of private wealth management.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau could consider expanding exemptions for small lenders from its qualified mortgage rule after it goes into effect on Friday, according to Richard Cordray, the agency's director.

The Minneapolis bank's agreement to buy 94 RBS-owned branches in Chicago is the biggest deal that a big bank has pursued in awhile, and observers will watch the approval process closely for any signs that regulators are warming to the idea of acquisitions by large banks.

Despite the risks, lenders have calculated that certain loans that fall outside of QM are worth making and holding on their balance sheets.