Banco Popular de Puerto Rico

The debate over whether banks should be run by separate chairmen and chief executives has gained fresh urgency as proxy season has arrived. Even at the biggest banks, the question remains far from resolved.

Many regional banks are too small to face the most onerous capital requirements yet big enough to grapple with the growing mountain of regulations. That, and some deft positioning, has left the group more profitable than its larger and smaller brethren alike. American Banker editors discuss the success of the regionals and the challenges they face.

Look beyond the hype about the price of this digital currency. Because Bitcoin's not just a currency, it's also a payment system, and as such a budding challenger to PayPal, Western Union, Visa, MasterCard, and perhaps banks themselves. Whether the currency is a pot of gold or fool's gold is beside the point, argues Executive Editor Marc Hochstein. The real potential of this technology is as a set of pipes for transmitting value.

The traditional way of doing business in the branch network may be dead, but bank branches themselves will survive in some form, says Bank of the West’s Andy Harmening, a senior executive vice president and regional banking group head. Bank of the West has been able to open de novo branches without hiring any additional staff, thanks to advanced technology, to meet customer demand for in-store mortgages, small-business loans and investment advice. Harmening spoke to American Banker at the annual Best Practices in Retail Banking Symposium.

As regulatory scrutiny of third-party vendors is increasing, banks must improve their research and monitoring of the business they outsource.

Big banks and their CEOs are facing lots of questions at their upcoming shareholder meetings, but the stakes might be higher for community and regional banks.

The OCC is seeking enforcement powers against the consultants it requires banks to hire, but having such authority may be a limited fix at best.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau "has been a good communicator" with the banking industry and "has done some positive things" but also has "a big job to do," says Bank of the West's Andy Harmening, a senior executive vice president and regional banking group head. Harmening discusses the advantages and pitfalls of dealing with the new regulatory agency at American Banker's annual Best Practices in Retail Banking Symposium.

Why haven't any bankers gone to jail for the financial crisis? "Maybe they didn't commit a crime. … There's a difference between committing a crime and using bad judgment," says former JPMorgan Chase CEO William Harrison.

The banking industry backs a controversial cybersecurity bill, saying it would give them timely information needed to fend off cyberattacksm, while civil liberties groups charge the bill lacks safeguards to protect people's privacy.