News and Information from American Banker

Senate Banking Committee ranking member Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., sent a letter to banking regulators urging them to preserve the enhanced Supplemental Leverage Ratio, warning that a rollback would only enrich bank shareholders.

Cincinnati-based First Financial scooped up Westfield Bank near Cleveland after Westfield's parent company decided to exit the bank space and focus on its core insurance business.

The wealth management and digital banking fintech is following in the footsteps of other fintech IPOs as the market rallies around Chime and Circle.

Since the end of COVID, each bank has set its own rules for how often employees need to show up at the office. Here's how a dozen lenders are handling the shift.

A number of fintechs emerged amid the COVID-19 pandemic as a flurry of Paycheck Protection Program loan applications inundated banks. Now, the government is alleging many of them facilitated or committed fraud.

The card network's moves include supporting coins from Fiserv, PayPal and others; and offering services to what's expected to be a fast-growing industry.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell testified in the House Tuesday on the heels of yet another pointed social media post from President Donald Trump. But House Republicans largely avoided landing political blows against the central bank chair.

The president should unwind the federal government's stake in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and direct the proceeds to a housing remainder trust designed to close critical gaps in real estate lending.

Citigroup is on a quest to modernize its global payments stack and be the go-to financial institution for cross-border payments and international corporations. Debopama Sen, head of payments at Citi's Services business, spoke with American Banker about the divisions' progress since its Services Investor Day in June 2024.

The Cincinnati bank aims to grow in northeast Ohio with the acquisition of Westfield. The deal is expected to boost First Financial to a $20.6 billion institution.

House Financial Services Committee Chair French Hill, R-Ark., declined to say whether he would pass the Senate's GENIUS Act without making his own changes, as President Trump has preferred.

Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp. has applied for an industrial loan company charter, joining General Motors and Ford in hoping for better prospects for approval under the Trump administration.

Barely two years after adopting a bank charter, NewtekOne in Florida plans to expand beyond its roots as an SBA 7(a) lender by growing its alternative loan program.

The Federal Reserve is the latest bank regulator to purge reputational considerations from its supervisory materials.

Although credit bureaus have collected this data for three years, it's only now being factored into assessments of consumer creditworthiness.

The financial technology seller plans its own coin and interoperability with PayPal's PYUSD, potentially reaching millions of consumers and merchants and thousands of banks.

Following strikes on nuclear sites, the U.S. warned of a heightened threat environment. Here's how Iran has targeted American banks in the past.

More than a year after Synapse went bankrupt, fintech customers who lost money due to the fintech middleware firm's collapse might be made whole through the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's customer relief fund.

The Federal Reserve's vice chair for supervision said changes to the supplemental leverage ratio are needed to bolster the Treasury market and ensure banks are not incentivized to take on excessive risks.

Foreclosure activity surged in the first quarter, underscoring the growing need for borrower support as certain federal protections expired.

The CEOs of Bank of New York Mellon and Northern Trust have had at least one discussion about a potential merger, according to a Wall Street Journal article. On Monday, a spokesperson for Northern Trust said the bank "is fully committed to remaining independent."

The Florida bank plans to expand its solar lending operations while Senate Republicans look to end most tax breaks for clean energy.

President Donald Trump has signed a Congressional Review Act resolution that eliminates the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's Biden-era rules requiring stricter reviews of bank mergers and a time-out clock for some institutions.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's decision to remove reputational risk from banks supervision plans means that one of examiners' most effective tools has been stripped away.

Analysts are predicting stronger results this year after a disappointing outcome in 2024.

There were some intriguing ideas at the event, but whether they'll take off remains to be seen.

New York's attorney general announces MoneyGram will pay a civil fine to settle a lawsuit over its handling of remittance payments; Swedish buy now/pay later lender Klarna is getting into the telecom business; Truist Financial has hired Charles Alston to lead its new nonprofit hospital, higher education and government banking team; and more in this week's banking news roundup.

Deputy Treasury Secretary Michael Faulkender says Basel capital rules need to fit the U.S. economy and avoid discouraging banks from lending.

From AI to crypto to the fraud fight, the industry is rapidly evolving; these young companies are looking to take advantage.

Lipkin, who built Valley National Bancorp from a small community bank into a regional institution with 200 branches in four states, passed away this week at age 84.

Financial markets were shaken but not stirred this past spring, according to the Federal Reserve, as swinging stock prices and bond yields did little to bring down elevated asset prices or leverage. 

The fintechs at this year's NYC Innovation Lab highlighted the demand for new forms of artificial intelligence in financial services.

Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough has ruled that Republicans cannot move ahead with slashing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's funding and Federal Reserve staff pay in the tax bill.

Pursuant to an executive order on "overcriminalization," the OCC said it will revise its guidance for referring regulatory offenses to the Department of Justice for criminal prosecution and will publish a review of criminally enforceable regulations by May 2026.

The president's rush to weaponize trade policy is going to accelerate efforts by other countries to decrease their reliance on U.S.-based payments processors. That's not in the country's interest.

The credit bureau is working with Plaid to provide lenders with current and predictive cash-flow data for consumers that don't have an extensive credit record.

The removal of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau as a viable regulator has thrown the doors open to the kind of unscrupulous behavior that triggered the last major financial crisis.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is restricting its civil penalty fund from paying for consumer education and financial literacy programs.

The bank's investors hope to see the small community bank in Utah transform and grow into "a minority-owned version of Ally," as board chair Ashley Bell put it.

As innovation accelerates, economic uncertainty grows and the regulatory environment seems fluid

In recent years, there has been a rapid acceleration in efforts to transform the customer experience in banking

The AI revolution continues. Already a new breed of artificial intelligence has transformed chat

Introduction: Holly Sraeel, SVP, Strategy and Content, American Banker Live Media

Payroll and workforce management providers are embedding instant wage access and virtual wallets

A super-panel of experts and industry players explores the coming wave of opportunities for banks and other traditional financial institutions

Amid wavering public trust in banks and accelerating interest in the digital asset ecosystem

The urgency of personalization and customer experience over the next five years

Cyber risk-related fraud in financial services is increasing in frequency,

In today's digital landscape, small businesses expect more than basic banking.

Generative artificial intelligence is driving significant innovation in data analytics,

The state of financial wellness in America is often a hotly debated issue and has been a catalyst for innovation.

With BaaS under regulatory scrutiny, what's next for bank–fintech partnerships?

Banks' customer relationships are becoming increasingly transactional,

How consumer expectations are evolving. Subscriptions are everywhere

AI is transforming the future of lending. But without the right foundation

Why Digital-First Wealth Platforms and Banks See a Hybrid Model as a Wealth Generator for All

In an increasingly digital world, trust is built not just through products,

Delve into the strategies and tools that can help you leverage digital solutions

A spike in account-to-account (A2A) instant payments—accelerated by the effects of an instant-everything culture

Perhaps nowhere is artificial intelligence more vital to digital banking than in identifying risks

Bank-fintech partnerships can enable community banks to leverage new technologies

As banks adopt use cases for generative AI, the benefits are clear in pockets.

The tidal wave of fintech innovation that is transforming financial services shows no signs

With digitization being a necessity to meet customer expectations, the financial industry

Explore how AI is redefining the digital banking landscape, from strategic planning to scalable execution.

How Co-Locating Talent Across Tech, Operations, and Client-Facing Teams

Combating cyber risks and fraud in today's digital banking environment

Why Dynamic AI Modeling Using Diverse Data Continues to be a Game Changer

Artificial intelligence is enhancing the customer experience across bank channels,

In this detailed session, KeyBank and Personetics explore how "Cognitive Banking" is reshaping the industry

When the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released its final rule under Dodd-Frank's Section 1033

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the changes could touch the central bank's quarterly economic forecasts. He also discussed downsizing at the Fed and his tenure on the board of governors.

What's Now, What's Next – Insights into AI and the Future of Digital Banking A Conversation with Lino Catana

AI is transforming financial crime compliance, but where is it delivering real results today?

Both regional banks operate health savings account businesses, which could gain more customers, more fee revenue and more low-cost deposits if Congress includes a major HSA expansion in its final budget reconciliation bill.

Hear the latest trends in fraud and new novel ways victims are being targeted.

Learn about this successful partnership offering that was critical to the success and development of Key Virtual Account Management (KeyVAM).

In a fireside chat, discover the myriad ways that financial institutions are transforming

In this panel, fintech and banking leaders discuss how they're partnering to build new products

Synethic identity fraud, which is projected to cost banks $23 billion by 2030

As financial institutions navigate complex regulatory requirements and prioritize data security,

Gain strategic insights and practical tactics for optimizing your banking environment to effectively

A candid conversation about the modern leadership opportunities and challenges of steering a high-profile neobank into its next chapter.

American Banker surveyed banking leaders to understand the unfolding role

Nathan McCauley leads the only federally chartered digital asset bank—Anchorage Digital—and partners

The benefits of a bank partnering with a sports team include increased visibility,

Bill Pulte's social media posts saying inflation has fallen far enough added to intensified political pressure on the independent Federal Reserve chairman.

Opening Remarks

Even as unpredictable trade policies slowed down mergers in other sectors, banks have kept inking M&A deals at the same pace, according to a new report.

A group of more than 50 bipartisan financial experts, including former Fed Chairs Ben Bernanke and Janet Yellen, said that effectively eliminating the Office of Financial Research and weakening the Financial Stability Oversight Council would have devastating effects for the financial system.

The scheme used fake bank reps, social engineering and crypto to loot U.S. accounts across borders, according to the agency's Office of Inspector General.

The USDC issuer has added fintechs from Brazil and the U.K. to boost distribution. Plus, Klarna pumps the gas on AI and more in the global payments and fintech roundup.

The banking giant's JPMD sounds like a stablecoin, but it isn't exactly the same thing. Here's why that matters.

Automated systems respond poorly when confronted with edge cases and unfamiliar circumstances. But those are exactly the moments when a customer's trust in a bank is either established, or lost forever.

The Trump administration is seeking to fire roughly 90% of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's staff and is fighting for that right in court. But if the administration prevails, can other consumer protection authorities from other federal regulators pick up the slack?

The legislation has been able to garner a level of bipartisan support that was not possible in previous Congresses because of a lack of support from Democratic lawmakers, but many of those benefited from crypto industry contributions in the 2024 election cycle. 

Early Warning Services is teaming up with Fiserv to quickly drive uptake for its new Paze digital wallet with merchants and credit card issuers outside of its owner banks. Paze partnered with Worldpay earlier this month to unlock a similar distribution channel.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau cited ongoing litigation and cost benefits in extending compliance by roughly a year with reporting data on the race, ethnicity and gender of small business loan applicants.

In 2021, banks pledged to wind down their support for oil and gas. Last year they made a $162 billion U-turn, according to a new report from a coalition of advocacy groups.

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, a Democrat, signed a bill that delays the implementation of the interchange law for a year while banks fight it in court.

Wise bankers will recognize that as the Trump administration dismantles much of the supervisory structure built up over past decades, regulatory risks are being supplanted by other dangers.

As the Senate stands poised to pass a landmark bill establishing rules for stablecoin issuers, a provision allowing state-chartered uninsured banks to operate in states without prior approval is drawing concern from observers and opposition from state regulators.

The Federal Reserve, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued a request for information on a range of payments-related fraud trends in order to develop policy solutions to the rising instances of check fraud.

The CEO of First Northwest Bancorp is promising to fight a lawsuit claiming the lender helped a client perpetrate a Ponzi scheme that bilked a hedge fund out of more than $100 million.

San Diego's North Island Credit Union joins a growing number of institutions that are prioritizing AI technology to streamline customer service.

Commerce Bancshares agreed to pay around $585 million to acquire FineMark Holdings. It's the Missouri bank's first bank deal in 12 years.

Buy now/pay later provider Sezzle has filed a lawsuit against Shopify, alleging that the e-commerce giant engaged in antitrust practices by making it difficult for merchants to integrate Sezzle's BNPL offering into their websites.

The bank, which has spent years building an advanced data sharing system, says market forces will drive the project more than political support.

It is past time to rethink how we treat banking organizations in trouble. It is time we work to support institutions in trouble wherever possible, rather than simply punishing the institutions and the public.

Opposition is growing to the Trump administration's efforts to roll back fair lending requirements for lenders imposed by Biden-era prosecutors.

The 3.5% excise tax proposed in President Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill comes with wide-ranging implications for financial institutions engaged in money transmission services.

The retail giants are kicking the tires on their own currencies. The potential prize is a way to reimagine prepaid cards and gain a key position as new forms of artificial intelligence-powered payments take off.

Primis Bank plans to sell an undisclosed amount of its 19% ownership stake in Panacea Financial, a digital-only lender focusing on medical professionals and veterinarians. The deal should yield $22 million.

The fintech and nonprofit join others, including AARP and the ICBA, in working to raise awareness of the financial risks of Alzheimer's and dementia.

The impact of President Trump's tariffs is the top concern for most middle-market American businesses, a new KeyBank survey found. But these firms also view the scrambled landscape as a chance to innovate and restructure.

The Federal Reserve Board banned a former relationship banker in Arkansas after he was caught stealing customer funds; Benchmark Federal Credit Union plans to merge with Franklin Mint Federal Credit Union to form a $2.1 billion-asset institution; Robin Vince, CEO of Bank of New York Mellon since 2022, has been elected chairman of the board; and more in this week's banking news roundup.

In USAA's battle with banks over mobile deposit technology, which it says it invented, a bank has scored a rare victory.

The House and Senate will need to resolve a slight difference between their versions of the bill before sending it to President Donald Trump for his signature.

A Trump-appointed judge refused to dismiss a settlement between the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and a Chicago mortgage lender over lending practices that an appeals court already said violated the Equal Credit Opportunity Act.

Blockchain-based tokenized financial products are rapidly advancing into asset classes like private credit and commercial real estate. American banks must lead, before global competitors set the terms.

At a preliminary injunction hearing seeking to determine whether two sidelined appointees are shielded by removal protections, a federal judge pressed both sides on whether the independent credit union agency exercises executive power.

The Trump administration's fiscal 2026 budget carries over 7(a)'s $35 billion funding authority for a fourth consecutive year, even though lending has grown significantly

As the crypto-friendly GENIUS Act winds its way through Congress, executives at some of the nation's largest banks are showing a newfound enthusiasm for stablecoins.

The card, powered by fintech Cardless' embedded credit card platform, provides up to 4% cash back in bitcoin, and allows customers to service their account directly in the cryptocurrency exchange's app, similar to the way Apple Card works in Apple Wallet.

Reports that the White House is considering naming Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent as the next chair of the Federal Reserve have raised eyebrows and speculation in Washington — especially in an administration with a penchant for assigning cabinet secretaries multiple jobs.

A recent federal road map helps banks implement a security model where no user or device is trusted automatically — a drastic departure from legacy systems.

Bankers are finding creative uses for generative AI in their personal lives.

New forms of artificial intelligence can take most, if not all, of shopping and checkout out of the hands of humans. Not everybody is going to be comfortable with that, though the payment giant sees travel as a good place to start.

Small businesses are essential to the ongoing prosperity of the United States, but they are not well served by the country's largest banks. For everyone's sake, that needs to change.

A non-bank lender won't ever compete with a bank on price, but can offer flexible underwriting and faster origination times, according to a veteran originator.

Royal Bank of Canada, BMO Financial and others increased allocations to cover the possibility of souring loans as trade pressures shake international markets.

JPMorganChase CEO Jamie Dimon said he wouldn't invest in the private-credit business if he were in different shoes. Meanwhile, an executive at Zions Bancorp. predicted that the sector's rapid growth will end badly.

The Senate voted 68-30 to invoke cloture on the GENIUS Act, which aims to regulate stablecoins, including backing from all Republicans and 18 Democratic lawmakers.

The past two Federal Reserve vice chairs for supervision failed to implement the final installment of the Basel III capital framework. Newly installed Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman is taking a new approach to the thorny question of bank capital.

A class action lawsuit against the bank's top executives and its auditor in connection with its 2023 failure was dismissed by a federal judge, who said the court did not have the authority to hear the case.

Hendricks County Bank loan officers are using Abrigo's Community Lending platform to help small-business loans get approval more quickly.

The Trump administration plans to stop minting the one-cent coins early next year. Here are the potential consequences that banks and credit unions should prepare for.

Payments greater than $1 million are favored among the Charlotte-based bank's corporate clients; the U.K.'s Financial Conduct Authority taps NVIDIA for AI testing and more in this week's global payments roundup.

The House Financial Services Committee passed a crypto oversight bill in a 32-19 vote, as well as several other bills bankers support, including one to curtail abusive trigger leads in mortgage lending, in a lengthy markup.

The government measure of inflation for May ticked up modestly, adding to the signals that the Federal Reserve is unlikely to move on interest rates when it meets next month.

The HUMPS Act, pending in Congress, would take necessary steps to begin putting some guardrails around regulators' assessment of the quality of banks' "management."

The Trump administration's plan to fire 90% of the staff at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has raised constitutional questions about whether courts can decide whether a president is taking "care that the Laws be faithfully executed."

The JPMorgan Chase CEO also sounded off on regulatory requirements, expressing optimism that capital rules will be scaled back.

Shelia Bair, who chaired the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. from 2006 to 2011, said that while post-crisis reforms may have overregulated banks, the current deregulatory swing could undermine important protections and lead to another banking crisis.

Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., filed for cloture and filled the amendment tree on the stablecoin bill, effectively closing the path for the credit card legislation offered by Sens. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Roger Marshall, R-Kan., that would address credit card swipe fees.

Cara Petersen, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's top enforcement official, said the Trump administration has "no intention to enforce the law in any meaningful way."

Regulators' decision to lift a seven-year-old cap on the size of the megabank's balance sheet will produce benefits over the long haul, but it won't result in any sudden gains, according to CFO Michael Santomassimo.

The French institution is one of the first to take advantage of new regulations that are supportive of crypto. Payment experts say banks have work to do to beat existing stablecoins.

Shell companies, stablecoin and a Bahaman bank that took orders from a gang of fraudsters all took part in a scheme that bilked U.S. victims of millions.

The pending law, which has passed the Assembly and Senate, prohibits food and retail stores from refusing to accept cash payments. Cashless establishments have been prohibited in New York City since 2020.

Banks can now make loans of less than $1,000 easily and profitably. Increasing their availability would benefit consumers, communities and, most of all, banks themselves.

Pro-crypto regulations could draw U.S. banks into the market, providing fresh competition. CEO Paolo Ardoino spoke with American Banker about the digital asset firm's strategy.

When a Chicago bank crashed, delivering a major blow to the Deposit Insurance Fund, regulators said they suspected fraud. Historically, that's a common story.

The New York City-based specialty finance company must pay $3 million as part of a settlement with the SEC for allegedly inflating its stock price. Its president must pay a separate $1 million fine.

A coalition of trade groups urges federal agencies to match private-sector cybersecurity standards.

The bank says it hopes to help improve the payments ecosystem and meet the needs of underserved customers through supporting U.K.-based fintechs.

Michelle Bowman has officially taken the reins as the Federal Reserve's top regulatory official, giving her the ability to advance policy proposals.

A forthcoming bill from Sens. Jim Banks, R-Ind., and Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., would allow the Federal Housing Finance Agency director to set limits on executive pay at the Federal Home Loan banks.

Some banks hope to use M&A as a way to play defense, either because they need to shore up their deposits or because they have aging CEOs and are looking for an exit. But investors aren't wild about the deal math.

Acting Comptroller of the Currency Rodney Hood responded to a letter from the Conference of State Bank Supervisors regarding federal preemption of state banking laws by saying that the agency's standards comply with the law, court precedent and White House policy.

A new executive order reverses digital ID initiatives, fraud alerts and federal data-sharing plans from which banks stood to benefit.

The annual rankings honor the notable performance of individuals in banking and finance and as teams.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. has sent a draft proposal to revise the supplemental leverage ratio to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs as a first step toward revising the leverage rule.

Trump's bank regulatory team is advancing all types of wish-list reforms, some more radical than others. When, not if, the political winds change, banks should be ready for a sharp reversal, what could become a wave of "revenge regulations."

After years of laying the groundwork, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans has converted its credit union into an all-digital bank. Here's a look at the company's strategy.

Tech leaders explain how they're trying to use artificial intelligence to better understand customers and communicate with them, without seeming robotic.

NB Bancorp's deal for Provident Bancorp is the fourth announced in the Bay State since December. It comes nearly three years after bad crypto mining loans led to massive losses at Provident.

The Banking Committee's portion of the Senate budget bill would eliminate the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's ability to request funding from the Federal Reserve, a move that goes further than House Republicans' version of the bill.

Congressional Democrats offered a bill Friday requiring the Treasury Department to apply the anti-money-laundering requirements of the Corporate Transparency Act more fully and help educate small businesses on how to comply with reporting of beneficial ownership information.

Bethany Corum succeeds Tom Barron as president of Capital City Bank; Independent Bank Corp. plans to finalize purchase of in-state rival, Enterprise Bancorp; Customers Bank taps Mark McCollom to take over as chief financial officer; and more in this week's banking news roundup.

In her first speech since being confirmed as the Federal Reserve's vice chair for supervision, Michelle Bowman outlined a set of ambitious pursuits that would overhaul bank regulation and examination.

In an interview with American Banker following Circle's IPO debut, President Heath Tarbert discussed the stablecoin issuer's go-public timing, the importance of regulation and transparency and how the fintech sees itself working with banks.

The government should allow and encourage financial institutions to deploy advanced technologies to protect customers from fraud enabled by agentic AI, instead of punishing them for innovating in response to new threats.

The U.S. economy added 139,000 jobs, a healthy clip that counters the president's calls for a rate cut to bolster the labor market.

Elon Musk's decision to step away from the Department of Government Efficiency has bankers in wait-and-see mode for what policy plays are next.

Large language models, bespoke hardware and embedded AI are attracting banks' tech dollars, experts say.

Richard Fairbank will receive the restricted stock units in recognition of his work related to the integration of Discover into Capital One, the company disclosed.

The National Conference of State Legislatures asked that leading lawmakers strike a provision in the Senate stablecoin bill that they say would preempt state authority to bar state-chartered special purpose depository institutions from operating in their state.

Some Wall Street investors are beginning to doubt whether the harshest outcomes of President Trump's tariff threats will materialize. But in the absence of certainty, banks still face real challenges in M&A and long-term strategy.

Main Street Financial's ouster of James VanSickle came three months after its chairman characterized the company's financial performance as being "on the upswing."

The Federal Reserve Board governor said higher import tariffs could have a "persistent" impact on inflation.

Speakers at American Banker's Digital Banking Conference discussed financial technology trends including digital assets, cybersecurity and open banking.

Yotta is pursuing its lawsuit against Evolve, saying the bank misappropriated tens of millions of dollars of customer funds, ran a Ponzi scheme and lied to cover up its malfeasance.

The Toronto-based bank said that Aron Levine will become group head and president of BMO U.S. It also announced the upcoming retirement of Ernie Johannson, head of North American personal and business banking.

Even with the four basis-point drop, the 30-year fixed rate mortgage remained at levels last seen in February as the Spring homebuying season reaches its climax.

The stablecoin issuer's initial public offering is widely seen as a bellwether for the cryptocurrency industry at large. Circle's stock traded as high as $95.98 midday Thursday, nearly triple its $31-a-share pricing.

The payments company hopes to build its brand outside of its U.K. home base while attracting a deeper investor pool.

The creation of a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve creates a tempting target for bad actors, and raises the stakes for everyone in the areas of anti-money laundering, cybersecurity, market-volatility and sanctions-screening.

Banks that are financing the rise of nonbank competitors have been losing market share in commercial lending. But by getting in on the action, the same banks are also seeing some payoff.

The Senate voted to confirm Federal Reserve Gov. Michelle Bowman's nomination to be the vice chair for supervision at the central bank in a 48-46 party-line vote.

The first-of-its-kind growth restriction established a new precedent for how regulators can address a broken bank culture. With scant information about why the cap was lifted, the action provides little clarity on what Wells did right — or what the Fed did wrong.

The 5-year-old experiment of tying executive compensation to achieving diversity goals appears to be ending. The abrupt shift comes amid the Trump administration's crackdown on DEI.

Freedom Bank is rolling out Freedom@Work, which offers perks for employees of participating companies, as part of a wider strategy to attract more consumer deposits.

The card network behemoths and the London-based bank are looking to expand account-to-account payments through fresh partnerships and investments. Plus: President Trump withdraws Shift4 CEO's NASA nomination, and tokenized payments gain steam in Europe in this week's global payments roundup.

House lawmakers discussed the recently introduced market structure bill, with Democrats expressing concerns that the bill could enable banks to evade securities laws.

KeyBank and Pathward Bank are among the banks whose customers are asking them for digital asset services. But bankers remain cautious in this time of regulatory uncertainty.

Two bankers detailed how artificial intelligence is transforming fraud detection and incident response for their institutions. The technology lets analysts ask datasets direct questions.

The STATES 2.0 Act, currently pending in Congress, would go a long way toward giving banks confidence that they can provide services to legal cannabis businesses without putting themselves in legal jeopardy.

The Treasury market experienced unexpected volatility in April after President Trump announced sweeping tariffs, but recovered after the moves were delayed. Some see that as proof of resilience in the market, but others say it highlights vulnerabilities.

The San Francisco-based bank was long hamstrung by a regulatory order that kept it under $1.95 trillion of assets. Now Wells can hit the gas on business lines it had kept idle.

The acting chair argued for a simplified capital hike, criticized past approaches to bank mergers and signaled movement on the FDIC board could be coming soon.

Oxford Bank appears poised to reap benefits from a substantial investment in building out its commercial finance subsidiary. The business, which provides credit to companies that aren't a good fit for bank loans, has moved into the banking mainstream over the last 15 years.

The megabank is also updating certain policies to bar discrimination based on political affiliation. "We appreciate the concerns that are being raised regarding 'fair access' to banking services," a Citigroup executive wrote in an internal memo.

The Swedish buy now/pay later provider and the San Jose, California-based payments system separately launched payment cards in an effort to bring their digital finance offerings to brick-and-mortar stores and compete with established credit card issuers.

Brian Minick, who is in charge of cybersecurity for the bank, shared important cyber insights at an American Banker conference this week.

Acting Comptroller of the Currency Rodney Hood signals rollback of key safeguards like the supplemental leverage ratio, aligning with administration's push to ease bank capital demands and spur credit.

The probability of a trade war-induced recession is unclear and fluctuates almost daily. However, the possibility is real enough that banks have a responsibility to prepare for a serious economic downturn on par with the 2008 financial crisis.

The payments fintech is partnering with credit unions such as Michigan State Federal Credit Union to offer cash-back rewards on debit transactions using account-to-account payment schemes.

The Department of Justice is seeking to terminate a Biden-era lending discrimination settlement with Lakeland Bank. Last month, the DOJ took similar action in a case involving Mississippi-based Trustmark National Bank.

The CEOs of smaller regional banks received fatter bonuses last year than their big-bank counterparts, possibly thanks to low performance expectations at the smaller banks after the 2023 banking crisis.

The investment follows the success of KeyVAM, a virtual account management platform developed with the fintech for treasury clients and launched last year.

Forbright Bank was reprimanded by the FDIC last year in connection with its use of brokered deposits. To address the issue, the Maryland-based lender has built out a digital banking arm.

The GENIUS Act, in its current form, fails to account for the substantial risk of stablecoin runs and blocks regulators from imposing necessary oversight. It also lacks measures to prevent their use in illicit transactions.

Nathan McCauley told bankers now is the right time to get in on cryptocurrency.

Federal Reserve Gov. Christopher Waller said changes to the Federal Open Market Committee's quarterly economic projections could lead to clearer communication with markets and market participants.

The 15 largest banks had an average NCO ratio of 0.66% in the first quarter.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and Bank Policy Institute filed twin motions for summary judgement to strike down a 2024 agency rule for being arbitrary and capricious and exceeding statutory authority.

A new stablecoin bill threatens to balloon federal borrowing and increase the deficit, while a change to bank capital rules would vest the Treasury with power that should rest with the Federal Reserve.

Using watches, wristbands and other accessories at the point of sale is set for a boom, pressuring financial institutions to develop a strategy for the banking tech.

The Florida bank plans to buy Villages Bancorp for $710.8 million, marking its second in-state acquisition of 2025.

The bank's head of self-directed investing reflects on how her career has progressed at Brown Brothers Harriman, Goldman Sachs and now J.P. Morgan.

Maryland passes legislation to oversee the earned wage access industry; Truist Financial adds ex-Morgan Stanley Finance Chief Jonathan Pruzan to its board; The Citizens Bank agrees to buy a First Capital Bank branch in North Carolina; and more in this week's banking news roundup.

The transaction comes as the megabank is determined to simplify its operating model and shed units that have slower growth prospects or aren't core to its business.

The incident affected 7,500 people. The bank resolved the matter in less than a day.

The request for information was issued as part of an executive order aimed at eliminating paper checks as a form of federal payment in most cases, which the administration says aims to curb fraud, modernize disbursements.

As banking customers' expectations for digital experiences rise and fintech competition grows, the cloud has become essential to staying relevant.

The Federal Reserve's preferred measure of inflation moved closer to the 2% target last month, but the impact of tariffs remains to be seen.

As banks standardize their data in anticipation of the rise of open banking, they're turning to common formatting standards, including from the FDX.

Although the Trump administration is abandoning the CFPB's rule 1033, there are still a number of security standards to follow.

Call for submissions for women 40 years and younger who are rising leaders at their bank or financial institution.

A focus on client relationships, rather than products, and investments in AI are helping the company in an increasingly competitive market.

The megabank, which has spent years trying to improve its regulatory compliance, now has just one consent order remaining. And observers expect that Wells' historic asset cap will be lifted soon.

Three current and former employees of the New York City-based bank allege that executives made racist comments, misused corporate money and retaliated against protected complaints.

Princeton Bancorp, which has $2.3 billion of assets, reported a sizable impairment charge tied to participation loans on a pair of office properties.

When a card gets canceled or expires, Visa, Mastercard and other networks send replacement information to merchants. This can be a problem for consumers.

Legacy core systems and the high cost of hiring people with artificial intelligence skills are among the factors getting in the way of big AI payoffs, experts say.

The Federal Reserve chair said he made no commitments on the central bank's next monetary policy adjustment, only that the decision would be made based on incoming data.

Elon Musk, formerly head of the Department of Government Efficiency, said he will officially leave the federal government after a short but tumultuous tenure. DOGE's actions at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau are being reviewed in federal court.

A jump in provisions dragged down the Royal Bank of Canada's profits last quarter, prompted by the bank's fears of a potential tariff-driven recession.

In a letter to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the American Bankers Association rebuffed state regulators' calls to rescind the agency's broad state preemption rule, defending federal law's supremacy in the dual banking system.

Umar Farooq and Max Neukirchen lead an $18 billion unit that touches most of the planet. Here's what they told American Banker about instant processing, how artificial intelligence is affecting jobs and what they look for in new leaders.

The top five credit unions had more than $234 billion in loans and leases as of the end of Q4 2024.

Until a regulatory perimeter is established, banks should tread carefully — and so should everyone else.

If you are still thinking of blockchains as slow, clunky and expensive, do not feel badly. As is the story of many emerging technologies, they evolve quickly.

The Trump administration's plan to shift $1.6 trillion in student loans could include a sale to a private buyer. If that's the case, any potential purchaser has some serious due diligence to undertake.

Analysts awaiting specifics on the "implicit guarantee" for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are split on whether mortgage rates and guarantee fees could rise.

Navy Federal Credit Union's partnership with Bloom Credit, a data breach at Coinbase and other tech news draw attention from bankers going into June.

What if the guiding narrative of 2,000 years of human history was a slow march toward the worship of money? A new book by Paul Vigna argues that we could fix this problem if we declared an old-fashioned jubilee and simply erased all debts.

Banks sued the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau last year to stop the 1033 open banking rule from taking effect. Now the Trump administration plans to kill the rule.

According to a new survey from HSBC, 72% of American corporations have seen their operating costs increase due to the Trump administration's new tariffs.

During its meeting last month, some members of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy committee expressed concern about persistent supply chain disruptions while others were confident price growth would be constrained.

The Brazilian neobank expanded its bank accounts for minors with new features in 2024 by adding high-yield savings "boxes" and expanding parental controls.

U.S. households were financially sound last year, but the Federal Reserve's annual well-being report highlighted a few emerging trends, including rising buy now/pay later delinquencies and incidents of financial fraud.

The card giant appointed Antony Cahill as its new regional president and CEO; Global Payments further simplifies its business; Curve adds Apple Pay rival to iOS devices; and more in this week's global payments roundup.

Bill Pulte and the government-sponsored enterprise's chief executive will be working with a firm that analyzes big data and utilizes artificial intelligence.

BMO Financial Group has sold a U.S. credit card portfolio and exited a franchise loan portfolio as part of an effort to achieve a return on equity of at least 12% in its U.S. business.

BNY, Goldman Sachs, JPMorganChase and State Street are among those scored lowest by Sinergia Animal, despite pressure from shareholder activists to stop financing companies that exploit animals.

The quarterly data showed bank profits were driven by gains at large firms while credit quality remained mixed, with commercial real estate loan stress at relatively high levels.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's erosion and the second phase of the Capital One merger with Discover are top of mind for bankers going into June.

The Treasury Department is claiming extensive authority to pry into the private financial information of Americans on the flimsiest of pretexts. It's time for the courts to step in.

The leaders that saw their salaries skyrocket the most in 2024 had also gotten pay cuts in the prior year.

Citadel Credit Union is joining the small cadre of credit unions active in the Small Business Administration's biggest loan program as it seeks to expand in its small-business-rich footprint.

Regulators say the Mississippi-based depository satisfied the terms of the $5 million settlement it reached with Biden administration officials in 2021.

The stablecoin issuer has kicked off its initial public offering after reportedly delaying it due to macroeconomic uncertainty caused by Trump's tariff plans last month. It first filed its S-1 with the Securities and Exchange Commission in April.

Agency lawyers called the rule, which was almost a decade in the making, "unlawful" in a court filing.

The Federal Reserve and several industry groups agreed to put an indefinite stay on their legal fight over the annual examination process.

As real-time payments become more common, UBB's partnership with fintech Pidgin offers a roadmap for smaller banks to stay relevant.

The regulator says its prior amicus brief, which cited the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and sided with borrowers, was no longer valid.

What does a movie about managing an unruly honky-tonk bar have to do with banking? When it comes to setting examples for corporate culture, maybe a lot more than you think.

A recent deal involving a troubled Texas bank shows that even the most lopsided depository can find an exit.