Banking

A senior Bank of America tech executive has migrated about 20 blocks south in New York (from Bryant Park to Madison Square Park) and into a very different world, offering platform-as-a-service to banks and other customers.

The FTC and the State of Florida have obtained settlements with a group of defendants who participated in a tech support scheme that allegedly defrauded thousands of consumers out of millions of dollars.

Legal collections took a backseat to other financial processes in the wake of the recession. But with the job market showing strength and the related assumption that defaulting borrowers are regaining the capacity to pay back debt, it’s expected collection revenue via litigation will grow in 2016.

Digital is a big reason why the biggest banks have moved ahead of regional banks in satisfaction surveys, but there are several others, a J.D. Power & Associates executive says.

Bank of America awarded Chief Executive Officer Brian Moynihan $16 million for his work last year, raising his compensation 23%.

American International Group is expanding bets on property lending and safe fixed-income securities after hedge-fund investments soured.

The Chicago, Des Moines and Cincinnati FHLBs have grown their life insurance company membership the most in recent years.

Low borrowing costs and rising home values are just two of several reasons owning a home is far less burdensome than it was a decade ago.

Fannie and Freddie have been selling pools of delinquent mortgages at auction to the highest bidders. Community groups say the Federal Housing Finance Agency should be giving preferential treatment to nonprofits and community development financial institutions.

The IRS won't meet the March 1 deadline to sign contracts with private debt collection agencies to collect unpaid tax debt.

SunTrust is turning to fintech to help it provide better payments solutions to its business customers. The approach is novel because so much of fintech innovation centers on overhauling retail banking.

For the second year of their Financial Solutions Lab competition, the Center for Financial Services Innovation and JPMorgan Chase are looking for companies that would help people prepare for and weather financial shocks.

A rough economy, regulation and evolving technology will keep forcing small banks to merge, said Richard Hunt, head of the Consumer Bankers Association. Hunt's position puts him at odds with bank advocates, including Camden Fine at the Independent Community Bankers of America, who believe small banks should ignore the drumbeat calling for more consolidation.

Flagstar Bancorp in Troy, Mich., has launched a national homebuilder lending platform.

Sterling Bancshares in Poplar Bluff, Mo., has completed its purchase of Bootheel Bancorp in Poplar Bluff.

Community bank executives need to focus on these three areas in order to embrace change and cater to younger, tech-savvy customers.

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 our social media platforms.

WASHINGTON — State regulators and House lawmakers warned the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau not to preempt state laws when the agency issues its proposal to regulate payday-type loans.

Capital Payments LLC, an Independent Sales Organization (ISO), has agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that it allowed a telemarketing scheme called The Tax Club to use merchant accounts to process consumers’ credit card payments.