Retail & Commercial

Columbus-based Northwest Bancshares finalized its acquisition of Penns Woods Bancorp; Barclays becomes the second U.K.-based bank to leave the Zero Banking Alliance; BankUnited announces the appointment of Michael Mitchell as executive vice president, director of branch banking; and more in this week's banking news roundup.

First Foundation is in transformation mode, after a capital infusion and new management gave it some power to remix its challenged balance sheet. But the bank just took its third quarterly loss out of the last four quarters.

The Cleveland bank is working with Personetics to provide advice and help to digital banking customers that takes into account their circumstances, current transactions and history.

Employment came in below estimates, which some economists expect could move the bond market in ways that affect loan costs even before the Fed meets next.

The San Antonio-based company plans to remain in state borders, but sees opportunity for growth in major markets.

The largest bank in Missouri, which completed the acquisition of Heartland Financial USA early this year, is on track to switch Heartland's systems over to UMB's systems in mid-October. The conversion should help realize "the next big slug" of expense savings, UMB's CFO said.

Northeast Bank and its fintech lending partner Newity have engineered a surge in 7(a) loans that has helped the Portland, Maine-based bank boost profits as tightened regulatory standards made the loans harder to get.

A FICO survey shows 33% think exaggerating income on credit applications is acceptable. Ironically, many also prioritize strong fraud prevention from banks.

Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte should direct the agency to examine credit scoring models based on cash flow as a complement to existing systems.

The continued investment in branches is a continued investment in bankers. A well-trained, motivated banker turns a physical location into a relationship hub.