Banking

MUFG Securities Americas is designated a primary dealer by the New York Fed; Founders Bank appoints Chris Lipscomb its senior vice president and chief lending officer; the Independent Community Bankers of America names Charles Yi senior executive vice president of government relations; and more in this week's banking news roundup.

The Huntsville, Alabama-based regional bank is well positioned to defend its Southeast footprint, according to CEO John Turner. It's hiring more bankers in growth markets, it has strong brand recognition and it has a long history in its core markets, he said.

During the fourth quarter, the Buffalo, New York-based bank reported its lowest ratio of nonperforming loans to total loans since 2007.

Data collected by the Conference of State Bank Supervisors demonstrates a huge disparity in compliance costs between large and small banks. Policymakers in Washington who claim to support community banks must act to reduce regulatory burden.

Community Financial in Syracuse has agreed to purchase a small bank that's built its business model around end-of-life planning.

Goldman Sachs' fourth-quarter earnings far exceeded analysts' forecasts, overcoming losses from its consumer-focused Platform Solutions unit.

The crypto lender issued over 5,000 loans to residents without a license and failed to assess repayment ability, the DFPI said.

The investment banking giant reported an 18% increase in net income for the fourth quarter and stuck to its 2-year-old financial targets, even as it exceeded some of them.

Noelle Acheson explains how on-chain vaults, born in decentralized finance, could shape the centralized banking of tomorrow.

The Swedish financial institution adds P2P payments as it tries to bolster its neobank aspirations. Payment firms don't like the U.K.'s potential restrictions on stablecoins and more in the American Banker global payments and fintech roundup.

Customers reported failed subscription payments and support issues, though a backup system kept some basic functionality online.

The San Francisco-based banking giant reported solid gains in credit card and auto lending as credit remained in check and quarterly operating costs declined from a year ago.

The megabank's net income declined by 13% during the fourth quarter as a result of a $1.2 billion pretax loss on sale related to the divestiture of its remaining operations in Russia.

Virtual reality and agetech devices were among the consumer electronics devices that caught the attention of U.S. Bank Chief Innovation Officer Don Relyea and Head of Research and Development, Innovation Todder Moning.

Coastal Financial in Washington State has acquired GreenFi, one of its fintech partners. The move is designed to buy time in order to figure out the best long-term strategy for the struggling neobank.

The 6-2 vote represents a win for the megabank, which has been fighting a nationwide push to organize its workers. Some 28 branches have voted in favor of unionization, while three have rejected unionization.

Despite attracting $2 billion in deposits, the cloud-native unit proved too expensive to maintain, prompting a strategic retreat by parent company SMBC.

Banks will start reporting their fourth-quarter earnings on Tuesday. But it's what bankers say about the next 12 months that will probably attract the most interest from industry observers.