Retail & Commercial

First BanCorp in San Juan, Puerto Rico, has created a new position to oversee strategic decisions.

Federal bank regulators will gather feedback on regulatory relief ideas at a public meeting on Feb. 4 at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, the agencies said Wednesday.

JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon had to defend the company against calls to break it up, doubts about its ability to command higher prices and greater efficiency, and investor disappointment with fourth-quarter results.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced automated teller machines by 12% last quarter as the largest U.S. bank exited from some retail locations.

The Federal Reserve's regular economic snapshot showed a moderate but consistent increase in credit quality and demand for banking services nationwide, though the report noted that sources of demand were highly variable and major financial stresses remained in some regions.

In an era where businesses are increasingly focused on cloud computing, Citigroup is turning instead to souped-up hardware in the form of IBM's newest z13 mainframe, which it says can help it better deal with the explosive growth in mobile and online transactions.

The San Francisco bank stands to gain from stronger loan growth, but Wells may no longer be able to rely on releasing loss reserves as a source of profits. Compliance costs and energy market volatility add to the complicated 2015 outlook.

A federal agency's plan to tighten membership rules for Federal Home Loan banks would hurt community banks and credit unions — and could endanger the financial system, according to a broad array of stakeholders, including state regulators, lawmakers and institutions.

Wells Fargo saw more of its origination volume come from refinancings, while JPMorgan Chase continues to rebuild its correspondent channel, the banks said in their fourth-quarter results.

The investment firm made the decision after veteran analyst Anthony Polini and an associate left to form a new research arm for American Capital Partners.