Any thought that Visa Inc. was interested in merchant acquiring quickly dissipated last week, when the card network decided to sell an online merchant portfolio it inherited from a purchase two years ago to Global Payments.

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Associated Banc-Corp has selected Datacard CardWizard issuance software for instantly issuing debit cards.

Peapack-Gladstone Financial Corp. in Bedminster, N.J., announced Monday that it will exit the Troubled Asset Relief Program this week.

Callahan & Associates has hired J. F. Sean Hession, a former executive at First National Bank of Omaha, as the consulting group's president and CEO.

Banks are asking for more data from card networks as they attempt to comply with new regulations capping debit card interchange fees, a Capital One executive said.

Prepaid cards have struggled against the perception that they are disposable and predatory. A card designed around the teachings of personal finance guru Suze Orman is aiming to break those stigmas — and may displace long-term banking relationships in the process.

The last thing banks need is a new competitor in the mix for mobile payments, but that's exactly what they've got with PayPal testing software at Home Depot.

First Internet Bancorp is creating a new division to offer traditional commercial and industrial lending to businesses in Indiana.

Providence Bank in Columbia, Mo., has brought in Kit Stolen 3rd as its new chief executive to oversee the clean-up of its loan portfolio and guide it through its next phase of growth.

Attorneys and consumer advocates gathered at the American Bar Association's winter meeting of consumer financial services attorneys raised various concerns about the CFPB and the impact it will have on federal preemption of state regulations of the bank and mortgage industries.

U.S. Bancorp has implemented the electronic payments system Secure Vault Payments with the Nebraska Child Support Payment Center for parents to make child-support payments online.

In the months before Bank of America Corp. acquired Countrywide Financial Corp., government officials exchanged emails discussing the beleaguered mortgage lender and rumors that it might collapse.

Investors holding at least $800 million of secured bonds in Residential Capital, which does business under the brand name GMAC Mortgage, have organized in the event the firm's parent, Ally Financial, throws the company into bankruptcy.

Robert Braswell, Georgia's banking commissioner, has learned a lot after seeing 74 banks fail in his state since 2008. He remains cautious about 2012 as his team emphasizes more risk control and corporate governance at the banks that remain.

So-called direct banks have become a favored avenue out of the shadow financial system, and into the federal safety net, for household names like General Electric, American Express and Discover.

With its deal for RBC Bank nearing completion, PNC takes a big step toward goal of reducing overhead by $150 million by early 2013.

A troubled Chicago-area community bank that just received a large capital infusion from its owners is now negotiating to restructure its loan with Cole Taylor Bank as it aims to rebuild its capital reserves.