News and Information from American Banker

BCB Bancorp says red ink may top $130 million in the third quarter, as its new CEO moves to address credit-quality issues.

Surveys from Fidelity and Edward Jones suggest that even clients with comprehensive plans and wealth don't always feel good about their financial future.

Nine months before the outage, the NCUA told a federal council it may no longer need the authority to examine vendors like the one that failed.

Anthropic lined up some of the biggest names in the industry for the rollout of Claude for Financial Advisors. But whether the tool is "revolutionary" or "just another integration," the hard work is just beginning for the AI firm and for its sole custody partner, Schwab Advisor Services.

State-level estate taxes can be imposed at much lower thresholds. From domiciles to the timing of moves, here's what financial advisors should keep in mind.

The banking-as-a-service business model has for more than a decade counted fintechs as its bread-and-butter clients, but as those same fintechs secure their own banking charters, some sponsor banks are narrowing their focus.

The Boston-based bank, created last year through a merger of equals, appointed Sean Gray as its next CEO. Gray's predecessor informed the company last week of his plans to retire.

The card network's Wallet Pay is designed to make apps interoperable and available on its merchant network. It's the latest of several moves from Mastercard and Visa that aim to attract banks and merchants into the digital wallet market.

The preliminary readout from Starling Trust Sciences' report on the Silicon Valley Bank failure is an assessment of the conclusions from three previous government reviews of the episode.

The release of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's internal metrics support this process, but other measures will still be needed, according to Bank of America.

Payment experts say that in the wake of Walmart supporting more digital wallets, many banks are missing the boat with mobile wallets by not aiming to stay top-of-wallet and by ignoring operational issues.

A forthcoming rule from Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network will spell out banks' obligations to identify the true identities and beneficial ownership of its clients, even as the administration eliminated most U.S. beneficial ownership reporting.

Looking past the headline numbers, there are reasons to be concerned about the condition of the U.S. economy. Particularly troubling is the fact that large numbers of Americans live financially precarious lives.

Roughly 680 customers were affected, none in the U.S. But the control that failed at Revolut is the legal intake queue every American bank runs.

The Federal Reserve's top regulator has the early returns from the report she commissioned on the 2023 bank failure and said it supports her call for new reporting practices among Fed supervisors.

The "near-prime" lending fintech Avant is seeking to become a full-service bank by filing for a national de novo bank charter with federal regulators.

The commerce company has made major inroads into embedded finance, a strategy that could get a boost from partnering with the social media giant's new AI agent.

Citadel Credit Union recently closed a $50 million loan on a Philadelphia office tower. It's part of a trend, as credit unions build their commercial real estate lending businesses.

State Street promotes Ann Fogarty to chief operating officer and names Mostapha Tahiri president of State Street Alpha; Florida's Portrait Bank expects to open for business on Saturday; Texas Capital Bancshares is on the lookout for a new chief risk officer following the departure of David Oman; and more in this week's banking news roundup.

Exclusive Research: Banks are moving too slowly to meet demand for cheaper, faster payments

Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman Friday highlighted a pair of new provisions to the final stress test framework that arose from public commentary submitted to the agency last year.

In a series of webinars and journal articles, two lawyers and a financial planner are leading a collaborative discussion about how estate planning professionals can better serve African American clients and, in turn, all customers.

Bankers need to understand that artificial intelligence services are increasingly used by customers shopping for banking services. The chatbots can be pretty unsparing in their assessments.

1st Summit Bank in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, is offering high school graduates not just free training, but a seven-year employment guarantee. It's an approach that some experts think could catch on.

Fincen and four banking agencies cleared mobile driver's licenses for customer identification. The question is, can banks read them?

Volume on a rail for AI agents to make transactions has fallen 93% in 2026 while related startups flood the market, suggesting technology is developing faster than demand. But payment experts say there's still a very bright future for shopping and checkout via advanced forms of AI.

Bankers are largely downplaying the impact of the Federal Reserve's interest rate increase. Some said this week that the quarter-point hike could be good for near-term profitability.

With three years of market appreciation buoying most advisors' revenue generation, Morgan Stanley says: Produce a bit more or see a small pay cut.

Credit Acceptance Corp. has agreed to provide $710 million in restitution and debt relief to resolve allegations of predatory lending by 41 state attorneys general.

The South Korean automaker's credit card subsidiary completed two proof-of-concept transactions that used stablecoins to move funds between subsidiaries in the U.S. and Mexico without a bank. Next, Hyundai Motor will test if the technology can be used as the backbone of its global treasury infrastructure.

Brokerages applaud a new rule that will relieve them of the obligation to monitor advisors' side gigs such as driving for Uber or bartending. But regulators say they still have plenty of obligations to monitor outside business activities.

The Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday issued an order allowing some tokenized U.S. stocks to be traded on blockchain-based platforms.

Now that regulators have failed to approve a controversial merger deal, the question is whether the buyer will have to pay a hefty fee to the seller.

Regulatory hurdles made starting a new bank harder after 2008, but research suggests the decades-long decline in de novos goes back further and that even a sharp deregulatory push won't lead to a rebound to precrisis levels of de novo applications.

A pair of proposals issued by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Thursday would create new merger processing timelines and extend national-bank preemption to certain out-of-state, state chartered bank activities.

The Securities and Exchange Commission said Rule 14a-8 exceeds its statutory authority and intrudes on matters of state law. Shareholder advocacy groups, however, argue that repealing the rule could reduce transparency.

Brian Johnson's nomination to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau advanced to the full Senate Thursday morning in a party-line vote.

Lenders fronting the money for massive arrays of AI-friendly semiconductors have no visibility into their actual output. That could change with better reporting standards modeled after the energy industry.

Visa and Mastercard have released products designed to manage AI agent risk, and are also working with Ant International on a shared know-your-agent protocol.

Osaic expected advisor departures during its massive consolidation of nine separate broker-dealers within its corporate structure. But CEO Jamie Price says the effort positioned the firm well for a future liquidity event. Here's how the independent broker-dealer is rebuilding.

Foreclosure rates were highest in the region, and nationwide, completed repossessions also saw a significant jump, according to Attom.

The failure of a much-anticipated crypto market structure bill Tuesday likely has doomed the effort to pass the bill in this Congress. The next version of the bill could be a double-edged sword for banks.

Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh framed the central bank's move to increase interest rates as a moderate adjustment to rapid economic growth during his post-Federal Open Market Committee press conference.

The market initially showed relief after the initial confirmation of an anticipated inflation-fighting hike but discussion of a future raise renewed concern.

Megadeals and private equity transactions usually draw the biggest headlines, but potential acquirers can take their pick from any number of possible sources of financing.

A bipartisan bill awaiting a Senate vote aims to reduce tax burdens for financial fraud victims by restoring an expanded personal casualty loss deduction.

State agencies supervise about 79% of U.S. banks. Their umbrella group just published the questions, documents and risk tiers examiners may use.

The Columbus, Ohio-based bank reevaluated its earnings guidance amid tough competition that hampered its production of commercial real estate and indirect auto loans.

The stablecoin issuer is the latest digital asset company to release its blockchain network to the public for financial institutions to use.

Commercial banks have increasingly tapped the Federal Home Loan Bank System for liquidity as rising Treasury yields have made the market for deposits more competitive.

Taxes can erode portfolio value in ways that add up over time. Explore five active investment strategies that can reduce capital gains tax impacts for clients.

The Clarity Act's failure is a relief for banks that didn't want even more competition. But the crypto industry wasn't a major headwind for banks anyway.

Small banks are uniquely vulnerable to local climate disasters, from floods to wildfires to tornadoes. Supervisors should be playing a more active role in helping them identify, measure and manage their risk.

Over the last 14 years, Chime has risen from fledgling fintech to a poster child for what successful bank-fintech partnerships can look like. Now, as the neobank stands on the precipice of owning its own bank, it faces new challenges as it gears up to go toe-to-toe with some of the country's largest banks.

A new study based on a survey of more than 500 advisory practices by The Kitces Report sheds light on how the fastest-growing firms are spending their marketing dollars.

As Truist Financial implements the strategy of Chief Executive Michael Lyons, the bank is dropping near-prime auto lending, a business that it says doesn't play to its strengths.

Bill Pulte, FHFA director, has ordered Fannie Mae to update its servicer guide to mirror Freddie Mac policy regarding notifying borrowers about dropping MI.

A high-yield savings account, incentive marketing and artificial intelligence-powered payroll are new additions to a long-standing strategy to lure clients away from fintechs and banks.

Seven of eight offices are open; debit cards are capped at $1,000 a day; and the bank's website is down. The bank has given no restoration date.

The Senate failed to invoke cloture on the crypto market structure bill, known as the CLARITY Act, by a vote of 49-50. The procedural vote would have opened floor time for debate on the legislation, and its failure to pass likely means the bill will not be reconsidered until next Congress.

Nola Bank is the seventh new institution to open in 2026, with another two set to start in the next few months.

The annual ranking showcases financial technology companies that receive high marks from their employees.

It will be a promotion for Jones, currently the deputy assistant secretary for single-family housing at the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Advisors discussed how they guide clients through the competing priorities of saving for their own retirements versus their children's college educations.

While Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh has sought to inject some mystery into the central bank's communications with markets, an American Banker analysis shows that officials other than the chair have been speaking more and more frequently over the last few decades.

Anxieties over AI drew attention from Democrats and Republicans during Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's testimony at the House Financial Services Committee.

The high-cost consumer lender withdrew its applications to acquire Grasshopper Bancorp, saying the regulatory approval process for nonbanks lacks clear standards.

Just because apps can categorize your spending and provide feedback doesn't mean that those insights are always helpful, or even welcome. Some empathy needs to be built into their design.

Constellation Software subsidiary CORA Group rebranded its U.S. core banking service as regulators are looking to inspect core vendor relationships.

Banks have embraced artificial intelligence for years. Now, after a week of dire warnings about the technology's risks, executives at two big banks are calling for caution and calm.

More depositories are getting involved in the securitized market and the competition is likely to add to expense management challenges of smaller balance loans.

Consumers' spending and payment behaviors were "holding very firm" despite inflationary pressures, Synchrony Chief Financial Officer Brian Wenzel said at the Barclays Global Financial Services Conference.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren sent a request for information to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners about state regulators' efforts to address private equity ownership of life insurance companies.

Advisors are still slow to plan for handing down their businesses, in part because of difficulties finding new owners they can trust.

Recent analyses found non-malicious AI agents can "think," emote and launch attacks unprompted. There are several things banks should do to protect themselves.

Increased costs, a limited consumer pool and churn are pressuring the financial institutions that are competing in the luxury card market.

Republicans released a new version of the crypto bill ahead of a scheduled vote. But even with the changes, Democrats have little incentive to offer support.

Parties trying to restrict stablecoin rewards have been relying on a trio of false claims that, despite public debunking, continue to be spread. At some point, the repetition of fake talking points begins to look purposeful.

Banks are racing to adopt artificial intelligence while often de-emphasizing basic banking education — human intelligence — at the new employee, executive, and board levels. That's a recipe for disaster.

It's easy these days to get caught up in all the bad news and very easy to lose sight of the good. So let's take a moment to focus on some good news.

Polling suggests that Democrats could retake control of the House and have a formidable shot at the Senate as well. If they win both chambers, oversight of bank regulation, crypto and Trump administration officials will be the name of the game.

The bank is accusing its fintech rival of racketeering for raiding its offices across nine states and stealing an untold amount of confidential information.

Mirroring the efforts of a number of larger institutions, Portland-based Northeast Bank plans to open a de novo branch in Bangor and renovate its seven existing branches.

The Brazilian digital bank is bringing its services to U.S. consumers through a partnership with Lead Bank as it awaits its own final charter approval.

Research from Cerulli Associates suggests that many RIAs have a long way to go with AI adoption while already finding possible ramifications for back-office staff.

Regulators want firms to spot where several critical functions ride on one provider, a question the department's earlier vendor guidance did not ask.

The digital asset and card-issuing firms are supplying the guts to enable transactions for cards and digital wallets, betting that Mastercard's ties to both firms will be attractive to banks, consumers and merchants.

North Carolina-based First Citizens BancShares completes its acquisition of 138 branches across 11 states; City National Bank appoints Chad Lloyd senior vice president and head of RBC U.S. Mortgage; London-based payments processor Checkout.com launches its U.S. subsidiary in Georgia; and more in this week's banking news roundup.

Advisors can leverage the updated opportunity zone program, starting in January, to help ultrahigh net worth clients defer capital gains.

As advisors rush to build their own AI tools, experts warn that guardrails need to cover data going in, not just data going out.

Bank and credit union regulators proposed a rule that would apply more supervisory oversight to core service providers, saying the firms sometimes provide little transparency to banks and can disrupt due diligence processes.

The decrease in jumbo availability accounted for much of the drop in the latest mortgage credit index, as conforming and government offerings were unchanged.

The consumer price index rose 0.4% last month, in line with July's reading. For a monetary policy committee that has been split on inflation, the inconclusive report will compel the Fed to make a call on whether to raise interest rates or stay put.

Artificial intelligence tools will certainly change the way the banking industry operates, but they won't eliminate the need to build your business on a firm foundation of care for employees, customers and shareholders.

I don't go in much for 9/11 retrospectives. I've never seen any documentaries about it, never seen any movies about it, never read any books. I don't need to. I saw the event itself.

Less than half the information banks share under the program relates to money laundering or terrorist financing, by Fincen's own count. Most is fraud.

Abacus Federal Savings Bank in Chinatown scrambled to reopen in the days following the World Trade Center attacks. The exercise resulted in the bank's first disaster-recovery plan.

New York's Arrow Financial and Pennsylvania's First Commonwealth Financial were seeing their insurance revenue grow before they announced agency purchases this week. Prior to 2025, banks were shedding their insurance agencies.

The AI company has debuted ChatGPT for Financial Services, an enterprise tool that may threaten the role of junior analysts at investment banks.

The USA Patriot Act passed on an overwhelming bipartisan basis in the wake of the 9/11 attacks, overhauling banks' involvement in anti-money-laundering efforts.