A pair of mutual banks in Maryland and New York that sold minority stakes more than a decade ago are pursuing second-step offerings that will result in both becoming fully stock-traded companies.

Challenger bank focused on serving the queer community plans to cease operations next month.

The product, designed for wealth management customers, is the first in the U.S. to implement Mastercard's Touch Card, which helps people distinguish credit, debit and prepaid cards through a notch on the card's edge.

Lenders in coveted locations with stable deposit bases are bullish about their expansion opportunities despite the shadow the banking crisis and recession fears have cast on the rest of the industry.

During her opening remarks before lawmakers Tuesday, the head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency reiterated that borrowers with strong credit profiles are not being penalized to benefit those with poorer scores.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s guarantee to consumers remains strong despite this spring's bank failures, the agency's chairman, Martin J. Gruenberg, said Tuesday. Gruenberg also noted that the FDIC's research shows persistent disparities in access to banks by class and race, and defended the agency's crackdown on nonbanks that fraudulently claim to be protected by deposit insurance.