Banking

Banking is dominated by leaders who are straight, white and male, despite copious evidence that greater diversity at senior management levels improves companies' performance. American Banker editors discuss why diversity efforts are falling short at banks and regulatory agencies, and what executives can do to fix these problems.

Yes, subprime mortgage lending is picking up. But industry experts believe regulatory reform and new documentation requirements will prevent bubble-era style risk layering from re-emerging.

Doral Financial (DRL) in San Juan, Puerto Rico, is developing a revised capital plan to address concerns from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

Bankers provide customers with a huge range of services free of charge. If banks want to compensate for the rising cost of those services, that's got to change.

A California man was arrested Friday for allegedly defrauding a bank out of $6.8 million in connection with his debt collection business.

Bryn Mawr Bank (BMTC) in Pennsylvania has agreed to buy Continental Bank Holdings in Plymouth Meeting, Pa.

Target Corp. Chief Executive Officer Gregg Steinhafel, dogged by questions over whether the company responded quickly enough to a data breach last year, will step down as chairman, president and CEO.

Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum is warning consumers about bogus collection emails that appear to come from her office.

Banc of California (BANC) in Irvine has acquired an 8% stake in Clearinghouse CDFI, an institution that serves low- to moderate-income communities in California and Nevada.

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Regulators are demanding that banks keep closer tabs on their relationships with third-party vendors, but they have left it to banks to determine which vendors require the most oversight.

The fate of housing finance reform hangs in the balance after the Senate Banking Committee delayed a vote on a bipartisan bill sponsored by senators Tim Johnson and Mike Crapo. American Banker editors discuss what's behind the delay and the likely next steps.

Technology companies are debuting data-security products aimed at both banks and consumers in the wake of the Target fiasco.

Lawrence Seidman helped arrange a face-to-face meeting of the companies' leaders, according to a regulatory filing. He also agreed to sell more than 2.3 million shares of Center stock to move the deal along.

A number of community banks took sizeable hits during the financial crisis due to dealings in participation loans. As more banks to reconsider these loans, some industry observers wonder if banks will stay disciplined.

It looks like average credit scores have fallen, but only if you examine GSE and FHA originations separately, the think tank's researchers say. When they are combined, the average holds steady.

First Bancorp (FBNC) in Southern Pines, N.C., saw its earnings nearly double in the first quarter from a year earlier behind higher net interest margin, lower provision for loan losses and higher fee income.

Banks have made major progress when it comes to promoting gay and lesbian equality at home. Now they are trying to solve their problems in countries including Russia and Uganda, mostly by advocating for change in private, the CEOs of Citi and MasterCard said Thursday.

Ocean Bank in Miami has been freed from an enforcement action by state and federal regulators.

A recap of the informed opinions (and the discussions they generated) on BankThink this week.