Banking

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

Debt collection litigation is not following any particular pattern this year. The only certainty is that Telephone Consumer Protection Act litigation is having a really bad (or, good, depending on your perspective) year.

A number of class-action lawsuits allege that investment advisers breached fiduciary duty by failing to recommend the least expensive products. But both trust law and investment theory acknowledge that responsible advisers take other factors into consideration.

Northwest Bancorp. in Spokane, Wash., has agreed to buy Fairfield Financial Holdings in Fairfield, Wash., for about $21 million in cash. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter.

U.S. v. Adrian Rubin, filed recently in federal court in Pennsylvania, ought to be required reading for anyone studying the history of online payday lending.

CashPoint will forgive more than $2.36 million in consumer loan debt after reaching a settlement Tuesday with the West Virginia Attorney General’s office over alleged illegal collection practices.

Bank of the Orient in San Francisco has received a federal cease-and-desist order because of shortcomings in its compliance with anti-money-laundering rules.

Johnson Financial Group in Racine, Wis., has promoted an executive in its insurance division to chief financial officer.

The case against Adrian Rubin offers a tour through lenders' efforts, dating back to the late 1990s, to avoid state-by-state interest-rate caps.

The second-largest provider of U.S. mortgages through brokers is bringing back a debt type that's almost disappeared since the financial crisis: Interest-only loans.

Flagstar Bancorp in Troy, Mich., has hired industry veteran Leonard Israel to lead its mortgage division.

The big bank has taken heat from social conservatives about its TV advertisement featuring a same-sex couple adopting a child, but Wells executives say the ad is part of a larger campaign that embraces the many demographic groups in its customer base.

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.

Glen Burnie Bancorp in Maryland has hired an executive from Patapsco Bank to be its new chief financial officer.

ChoiceOne Financial Services in Sparta, Mich., has tapped a new president as it splits the role from chief executive.

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.

HSBC has named a JPMorgan Chase executive the head of its retail banking and wealth management divisions in the U.S., as the British company overhauls its global business.

Companies offering loan assistance and credit improvement services, and their owner, agreed Monday to settle charges brought by regulators in Maryland.