Bank technology

As investment dollars flood into the alternative lending sector, fueling the rapid growth of early entrants such as Lending Club, lots of smaller online loan platforms are also popping up. Many of these new firms are specializing in narrow lending niches, touting their expertise in underwriting particular forms of credit. Here's a rundown of some of these specialties.

The Internet of Things, blockchains and smart (not "big") data could help financial institutions fend off disruption in lending, payments and money management, according to the Spanish bank's fintech mavens.

You'll find many disruptors in banking, but startups like Moven aren't among them. In essence, virtual banks simply dress up web storefronts to look like banks but offer one-tenth the services.

Fintech startups continue to captivate venture capital firms and angel investors, giving a boost to a program in which the operators of startups get advice from mentors and make presentations to hundreds of bankers at an annual event in New York.

A recap of the informed opinions (and the discussions they generated) on BankThink this week, including a proposal to regulate banks based on their activities rather than size and a plea for members of Congress to take action to help community banks.

In order for a blockchain to succeed, it needs to be a public resource. That means few alternative blockchains are likely to achieve much traction outside a small niche.

USAA is the lead investor in a venture-capital funding round for a developer of mobile applications for automobiles.

American Banker readers share their views on the most pressing banking topics of the week. Comments are excerpted from reader response sections of AmericanBanker.com articles and from our social media platforms.

Digital Asset Holdings, the blockchain technology startup led by JPMorgan Chase alum Blythe Masters, is expanding its capabilities by acquiring other such firms.

Banks need to take a hard look at the age-old practice of using signatures to authenticate card payments, Federal Reserve Gov. Jerome Powell said Thursday.

Applying early for the web extension increases the odds of getting a preferred address in a business where "First National" is as common as "John Smith." Eventually, bankers hope .bank gains widespread recognition as a mark of trustworthiness.

RiverNorth Capital Management is seeking to establish a closed-end fund that would serve as a source of permanent capital for so-called peer-to-peer lenders.

nnovation consultant Larry Keeley says banks are about to undergo some dramatic changes that will in turn change how people think of them. Here's how he sees it playing out.

Early developers of watch-banking apps have found there are unique complications to designing services for such tiny screens.

Credit Karma in San Francisco has raised $175 million in venture capital to expand its product offerings for consumers' personal finances.

Regions Financial and U.S. Bancorp are among the institutions that are using independent filmmakers to produce high-quality videos for YouTube and other channels. Industry experts warn, however, that success is far from assured in an already crowded social media world.

Fannie Mae will no longer charge mortgage lenders to submit loans to its Desktop Underwriter automated underwriting system, a decision that follows a similar move by Freddie Mac earlier this month.

A growing number of startups and banks are trying to design digital experiences that train users to manage their money more responsibly, starting with small amounts in mundane situations.

As financial technology transforms the banking industry, experts are placing bets on the banks and startups most likely to thrive in the digital future. Here are seven top contenders, according to insiders from both sides of the divide at last week's Next Bank USA conference in New York.

Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc said it has processed the 600,000 credit- and direct-debit transactions that were delayed last week in the government-owned bank's latest payments fail