Fintech

As a bank customer, I am trained to avoid fees at all costs. I diligently maintain a minimum balance in my accounts, pay my credit card bills weeks ahead of time and plan my day around getting to a bank-owned ATM to avoid surcharges.

Focus Federal Credit Union announced it has earned its Community Development Financial Institution certification.

Here's the sales pitch: use the service as much as you want for a flat monthly fee of under $10, potentially saving money over paying per transaction. It sounds like Netflix, but it's a new and fairly unconventional approach to how Cardtronics is selling ATM access.

BETHALTO, Ill. — The final bell has rung for School District #9 Credit Union in Granite City, Ill., as it was officially merged into $585 million 1st MidAmerica Credit Union, here.

Costco has picked Visa as its new payment card network and Citigroup as the new issuer of its cobranded credit cards.

The London-based peer-to-peer money mover TransferWise Ltd. opened an office in New York this month, proclaiming plans to disrupt the U.S. market. But in reality, it could be more an ally than a threat to U.S. financial services companies.

A court-imposed deadline for American Express to negotiate a fix to its merchant rules with the Department of Justice is about three weeks away. Odds of a deal are said to be low, heightening uncertainty — and fueling debate — about how the showdown will affect the future of the credit card business.

Prosper Marketplace, an online lender for consumer loans, has found a new source of referrals: community banks.

MADISON, Wis. — Credit unions should prepare for a slight rise interest rates this year, say economists.