Banking

The foreclosure crisis is receding, but it has having an enduring impact on lenders' risk appetites.

In 1979, mortgage bankers worried that they could be undercut by "sleeping giants" like Merrill Lynch, Sears Roebuck and what was then called Master Charge.

The New Jersey Senate passed a bill Thursday that would require collection agencies to stop pursuing identity theft victims until the debt is sorted out.

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.

Pioneer Bancshares in Dripping Springs, Texas, has struck a deal to merge with FC Holdings, the parent company of First Community Bank in Sugar Land, Texas.

As the Small Business Administration's flagship 7(a) loan program breaks records, its other loan program stagnates. Advocates for so-called 504 loans hope a drive to permit CRE refinancing will inject new life.

Banc of California in Irvine is looking for a new chief financial officer, after Ronald Nicolas announced his resignation.

Banks, marketplace lenders and other nonbank lenders were dealt a setback when a federal appeals court declined to reconsider a ruling that has set off alarm bells across the consumer finance industry.

First NBC Bank Holding in New Orleans has delayed the release of its 10-Q, after it discovered an accounting error.

Just 8% of U.S. mortgage origination volume in the second quarter went to borrowers with subprime credit scores, according to new research by the New York Fed. The findings suggest that mortgage standards have loosened only slightly, if at all.

Long proven popular in countries like the U.K., prize-linked accounts recently became legal for banks to offer in some states in the U.S. Blue Ridge Bank in Virginia is early to the market with a product that gives depositors a chance to win $200 monthly for every $25 they save.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency is expected to issue a proposal soon that would require Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to purchase manufactured housing loans from lenders.

Contrary to the results of a recent internal investigation, the Justice Department's Operation Choke Point circumvents due process in attempt to shutter lawful businesses like payday lenders and ammunitions dealers.

Homeownership is out of reach for too many Americans. The next president could change that with a few simple policies aimed at encouraging private capital to invest in residential mortgages.

Travis Patron of the research firm Diginomics discusses financial institutions' interest in Bitcoin and blockchain technology as platforms to facilitate payments of fiat currency and trading of real-world assets.

A tip from a whistle-blower led regulators to crack down on Citizens Financial Group for ignoring discrepancies between customer deposit slips and the amount actually placed into the bank — and similar actions against other banks could be on their way.

Argentine Federal Savings in Kansas City, Kan., has named Roger McWherter chief executive.

Enterprise Bancorp in Lowell, Mass., has named James Conway vice chairman and lead director.

Raymond Wilson is leaving the Honolulu bank, and current executives Anna Hu and Denis Isono will assume his duties later this month.

New Hampshire Mutual Bancorp in Concord will promote two executives to the position of president of its bank units after the retirement of Chief Executive Paul Rizzi.