Retail & Commercial

A New York federal judge erred in ruling a collection agency did not violate the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, an appeals court ruled Thursday.

Bitcoin adopters in Ohio have been some of the most vocal about how state laws need to evolve to encourage the use of digital currency, but the Ohio government seems to want that change to come from the courts rather than the legislature.

Associated Banc-Corp in Green Bay, Wis., produced strong loan growth and other results in the third quarter that analysts said outshone some of its peers.

Wintrust Financial in Rosemont, Ill., reported third-quarter earnings of $40.2 million, as increases in interest and fee income were partially offset by heavier expenses.

The Obama administration is pushing to ease access to mortgage credit, particularly for first-time homebuyers, but it doesn't appear likely it will employ one of its most readily available tools.

Capital One Financial reported flat third-quarter earnings Thursday as rising loss provisions offset modest loan growth.

The $1.1 billion-asset Starion did not disclose the terms of its deal for WPS Community, a federally chartered thrift with $98 million in assets.

AmericanWest is buying Bank of Sacramento for $60 million in cash. Although the deal was being negotiated well before the recent market sell-off, it serves as a good example of the comfort of a fixed cash price.

Although Congress may soon tackle whether to raise the $50 billion "systemic" threshold for banks, First Republic CEO James Herbert says the bank must still invest heavily in hiring the necessary staff to help it deal with the additional regulation from such a designation.

The lackluster earnings season for regional banks continued. Executives at Fifth Third and BB&T shared concerns about margin shrinkage and other forces beyond their control, and they provided contrasts in expense control and management of interest rate uncertainty.