Retail & Commercial

From the architects of multibillion-dollar mortgage settlements comes the latest scare for banks: a Department of Justice investigation of subprime auto lending. But the auto loan market has a different track record and players than mortgages, setting the stage for a unique fight among prosecutors, lenders and dealers.

BancorpSouth has withdrawn applications for two planned acquisitions after the Tupelo, Miss., company drew regulatory scrutiny for its Bank Secrecy Act compliance.

Independent Bank Corp. has spent recent years looking for a way to break into Boston without overpaying. It recently found a steal in Peoples Federal, a former mutual, in a deal that boosts earnings and tangible book value.

Bank of America (BAC) raised its quarterly dividend to 5 cents a share and dropped plans to buy back stock after the Federal Reserve approved its resubmitted capital plan for 2014.

Regions Financial has created a corporate and investment banking services group aimed at the financial sector itself.

Global Payments Inc., a global processor servicing more than one million merchants, will enable its clients to accept digital currency in a move that may attract more international shoppers to brick-and-mortar merchants.

The members of Monterey Credit Union have voted to convert from a CU charter to a mutual savings bank, the first step on the way to becoming a commercial savings bank.

CIT Group Inc., the business lender that last month agreed to buy OneWest Bank, has no plans to become a "serial acquirer," of financial firms, Chief Executive Officer John Thain said.

Creating deeper bonds with business clients can help banks win market share. But organizational inertia and sales managers who are quick to fall back on old habits often hobble this approach, according to consultant Duncan Banfield.

SunTrust Banks in Atlanta has named Susan Somersille Johnson head of its marketing division.