Retail & Commercial

The ability to program value exchanges without risk of censorship, moderation or theft gives smart contracts a leg up in servicing users who lack a mainstream banking association.

An Iowa man, who battled the Iowa Department of Revenue for three years over taxes he argued collectors never should have demanded he pay, received a $5,000 reimbursement this week from his former employer.

In many cases, customers aren't staying with a bank's brand because they are satisfied. They are staying with the brand because it's too hard to leave.

Wells Fargo has agreed to pay the state of California $8.5 million to settle a probe into its failure to tell consumers it was recording their calls.

Western Alliance Bancorp. in Phoenix has agreed to buy GE Capital's hotel franchise finance loan portfolio.

ESSA Bancorp in Stroudsburg, Pa., has a new chairman and two new independent directors.

ConnectOne Bancorp in Englewood Cliffs, N.J., has exited the Small Business Lending Fund program.

Opus Bank in Irvine, Calif., has hired Jeffrey Zaks, a CIT Group banker, to lead its new media and entertainment lending group.

The CFPB's latest monthly report on complaints from consumers focuses on debt collection complaints.

Credit unions have a dominant auto lending presence in the West, boasting as much as a 50% market share in some areas. Credit Union Journal explores what is driving that dominance.