Banking

Free checking peaked nearly a decade ago, but more than half of all credit unions continue to offer it, despite new players fighting for that business.

Despite legal cannabis category's regulatory complexity — or perhaps motivated by it — a new breed of merchant acquirers is slicing through the thick government red tape to process cannabis payments, one state at a time.

Randal Quarles was considered for Financial Stability Board chair spot; the outgoing student loan ombudsman says the agency puts lenders before consumers.

The information you need to start your day, from PaymentsSource and around the Web. Today: Amazon Go opens another store; Singapore digital pay project gets larger; Kenyan bank spins off fintech unit; People petition PayPal to do more to halt hate groups.

Chip Mahan, founder of Live Oak Bank, believes that if employees have their needs outside work met, they will work better with customers.

Michael Towbes, the owner of Montecito Bank & Trust who passed away last year, launched a program in 2003 that gives $1 million away to charities each year.

The Best Banks to Work For study is a collaboration between American Banker and the Best Companies Group, which conducts extensive employee surveys and reviews employer reports on benefits and policies.

Oakworth Capital Bank, which topped our "Best Banks" list this year, takes a broad view of wellness by providing employees with free healthy snacks and classes on time management.

Inspired by the book "How Fargo of You," Bell Bank has an awards program that recognizes employees with a talent for the little touches that matter to customers.

See the perks employees get at the 85 financial institutions that made our sixth annual Best Banks to Work For list.

Employees at First Federal Savings & Loan Association of Pascagoula-Moss Point love to eat, so much so that they started raising money for charity by selling lunches.

The service can be useful for customers short on cash, but financial institutions need to clarify overdraft rules and develop alternative forms of credit.

Organizers of new banks want to cater to underbanked minorities, entrepreneurs, military veterans and other specialized groups.

Seth Frotman, whose student lending unit had been gutted in May, said the bureau's current leadership "has abandoned its duty to fairly and robustly enforce the law.”

Bank7, which aims to raise $75 million, also has extensive dealings in the hospitality industry. The company has completed two acquisitions since 2011.

Year to date through Jun. 30, 2018. Dollars in thousands.

Year to date through Jun. 30, 2018. Dollars in thousands.

Legislation allowing regular bill payments to count toward credit history would solve more problems than some critics fear it would create.

The decision to adopt the name Axos Bank seems to put more distance between the company and its internet roots.

Small and midsize banks are most at risk as commercial loan volume fails to ignite; the cutbacks are partly the result of lower origination volume.