Retail & Commercial

Confusion over regulatory jurisdiction and burdensome compliance costs are cutting into community banks' profits and forcing them to consolidate. But it doesn't have to be this way.

Innovations on display this week have the potential to upend the bank sales process, disrupt consumer lending and change the way individuals invest in peer-to-peer loans.

Fueled by strong loan and deposit growth, BBVA Compass in Birmingham, Ala., said Thursday that its first-quarter profits climbed 4% from the same period last year, to $114 million.

Sterling Bancorp (STL) in Montebello, N.Y., said that its fiscal second-quarter profit rose 58% after it expanded through its merger with Provident New York Bancorp.

M&T Bank (MTB) and federal law enforcement officials have begun a fraud investigation into a former loan officer at the Buffalo, N.Y., bank.

Wells Fargo cut its minimum credit score for borrowers of Fannie Mae- and Freddie Mac-backed loans to 620 from 660. The step followed moves by smaller lenders, such as the U.S. unit of Toronto-Dominion Bank.

Ontario Systems, a receivables management technology and services provider, announced its Artiva collections solution has been selected by Credence Resource Management (CRM) to drive operations in the U.S. and India.

A collection agency in New York was shut down Wednesday after an investigation revealed the company repeatedly violated the law, according to regulators.

Financial pundits weigh in on questions raised and conclusions drawn from Bank of America's capital mistake, in tweets.

New restrictions on payday lending in Louisiana failed to win passage in the state's Senate as industry lobbyists argued the proposals would shutter the storefront lenders.