BBVA

Regulators in two countries are strengthening rules requiring banks and merchants to accept paper, while a majority of Canadian payments are now tap to pay.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA took its offer for Banco de Sabadell SA directly to shareholders, a rare hostile move that the Spanish government said it opposed on concerns over job cuts and reduced competition. 

The bank is piloting fingerprint-reading cards that work with existing payment terminals. Its goals are to strengthen security for large transactions and to inform future deployments in other markets.

Rosilyn Houston will succeed William Wolf, who is retiring this summer from Banco Santander’s U.S. unit.

Following the sale of its U.S. retail banking unit to PNC Financial Services Group, the Spanish bank is turning its focus in this country to wholesale banking.

Many loyal Simple customers have complained about the recent decision by BBVA USA to close the fintech seven years after buying it. The lingering business and cultural challenges that led to the move underscore the long odds against making such combinations work.

Younger is an executive director on BBVA's loan syndication team.

JPMorgan Chase is shutting its private banking business in Mexico, according to people with knowledge of the matter, as wealthy clients in some of Latin America’s largest economies move their money to international financial capitals.

BBVA’s acquisition of Simple, the first neobank, was closely watched as a possible model for others in the industry. But the shutdown last week of Simple has again stirred a debate about whether upstarts and traditional players can ever fit together.

The decision to shutter the digital bank comes just weeks after BBVA USA announced it was selling itself to PNC Financial Services Group for $11.6 billion.