Retail & Commercial

While its net income declined annually for the second consecutive year, CEO Hugh Frater touted Fannie Mae’s resiliency in a record year for providing mortgage liquidity.

Still under fire for financing oil-and-gas exploration, banks are now being criticized for bankrolling producers of the single-use bottles and wrappers that are piling up in landfills and waterways. How will they respond to the mounting pressure from environmentalists?

Transportation and clean-energy upgrades could create significant new lending opportunities, but some observers fear the government will foot the bill through a special tax on banks and other financial firms.

Opportunity Financial, which offers consumer installment loans in partnership with banks, is merging with FG New America Acquisition Corp., a special-purpose acquisition corporation. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter.

Harris Simmons of Zions Bancorp. warned that excess deposits could suppress loan demand and pose an inflation threat, while Darren King of M&T tried to reassure investors that deposits will be less volatile than some fear once the economy improves.

The majority of Paycheck Protection Program loans are being approved for borrowers in industries that have yet to regain their footing.

Bankers have claimed that the Small Business Administration's procedures to counter fraud and improper lending have ensnared legitimate Paycheck Protection Program applications.

Ken LaRoe, whose First Green Bancorp was sold a few years ago, is seeking approval for a de novo called Climate First Bank that would cater to low-income communities hurt by climate change and favor ecology-minded tech vendors.

Marcus Martin will be responsible for expanding sustainable investing options for the Minneapolis company's corporate and commercial customers.

In his new book, the Princeton lecturer and financier JC de Swaan contemplates what it means to be virtuous in a financial system that prioritizes profits and shareholder returns.