Bank technology

A closer look at a strangely named piece of malicious software shows it makes crafty use of drive-by downloads and Web injections to fool users into complicity with online banking fraud.

Community banks are at a crossroads as they face a threat from alternative lenders and the need to stay true to the traditional bank model. What they should do?

A British author and a Singapore venture capital firm have formed a $5 million investment fund to help banks partner with startup companies in the blockchain industry.

WASHINGTON — Several Democratic senators are calling for the Government Accountability Office to investigate whether financial technology companies are properly regulated.

Ally Financial has launched a mobile app that uses geolocation to caution smartphone-carrying customers when they are arriving at stores where they overspend.

As mobile wallets become more popular they'll also become more popular targets for fraud. Banks ought to improve enrollment guidelines and other security tools in plotting their mobile-wallet strategy.

The idea of financial institutions resembling utilities has caught on with some industry observers for reasons other than reducing systemic risk.

Cyberthieves using malicious software discovered by IBM Security have stolen $4 million from business customers of two dozen financial services providers this month, IBM said.

The Memphis, Tenn., company's forecast for the remainder of the year calls for cost saves from a branch-reduction effort that's gaining momentum as online and mobile banking grow and monthly visits to branches plummet.

It sounds like a bad idea to seat customers in front of a screen to open accounts or get other higher-level services from remote banking officers, but BluCurrent Credit Union in Springfield, Mo., turned to video banking to cure its branch traffic woes and its members seem to like it.