Retail & Commercial

NEEDLES, Calif. – Desert Communities FCU has moved into its new location, an old Bank of America building.

Customers are putting their cash to work, or at least taking it out of the bank, and bankers like U.S. Bancorp CEO Richard Davis think that could signal higher demand for loans down the road.

With mortgage rates climbing in recent weeks homeowners have switched from feverishly pursuing refinancing to buying new homes, a Federal Reserve Board report said Wednesday.

SLM Corp., the student lender known as Sallie Mae, reported a second-quarter profit of $543 million as private education delinquencies fell.

American Express Co., the biggest credit-card issuer by purchases, posted a second-quarter profit that beat analysts' estimates as customer spending increased.

Higher expenses and an uptick in problem loans weighed down quarterly profits at Community Trust Bancorp (CTBI) in Pikeville, Ky.

Strong gains in asset-management fees and a variety of one-time benefits helped offset a dip in interest income at the Pittsburgh bank. Its CEO says to look for more of the same in the second half of the year — and not to expect it to buy another bank.

Bank of America says it can rebuild its share of the home loan market as rates rise, but its mortgage business relies more on refinancings than at other big banks.

M&T, in Buffalo, N.Y., is still comfortable with its decision to acquire the mortgage lender even though a recent rise in mortgage rates could crimp Hudson City's profits.

Australian startup Pin Payments has acquired billing technology and the global customer base of a U.S. company to continue its push to provide developers with software that handles credit card acceptance online.