Retail & Commercial

The fireworks over a Pew Charitable Trusts report on lump-sum payday loans continued Friday as Pew challenged criticisms of its survey methodology.

Half of banking and other business leaders expect a stronger economy, and 44% expect a stronger M&A market, in the next 12 months, according to a new survey. Regulation remains a concern, but dealmakers are largely ignoring the lingering problems in Washington, observers say.

Stopping a proposed requirement that banks offer "plain-vanilla" credit products was an industry victory in the run-up to Dodd-Frank, but many believe it still survived.

A recap of the informed opinions (and the discussions they generated) on BankThink this week.

A group of National Football League players has sued BB&T (BBT) for nearly $60 million over alleged negligence by BankAtlantic, which BB&T acquired last year.

The head of the state bank supervisors' group said he sees a quiet push to "reform our regulatory structure to better reflect the business models of our largest banks."

We should think twice before cutting off access to alternative lenders that serve as a last resort for millions of low-income Americans. We should also encourage banks to remove the barriers for these customers when they want to open a savings account.

Royal Bank of Scotland has accelerated its plans to sell its U.S. subsidiary. The company will conduct a partial initial public offering of its Citizens Financial Group unit in the second half of 2014, and plans to fully divest itself through offerings in 2015 and 2016.

HomeStreet (HMST) in Seattle is expanding its mortgage business in California.