Banking

Big banks with the strongest financial performance varied in asset size, geographies and services.

Each of the top-performing banks with more than $50 billion of assets used their own mix of revenue streams to drive performance.

Washington Trust Bank is executing a slow-but-steady de novo expansion inside the I-5 corridor on the western side of its home state. Its newest branch is slated to open this fall in Tacoma.

The lender, which uses existing credit balances to fund installment loans, has linked to Samsung Pay and plans other partnerships in the future to build a global merchant network.

New data from American Banker finds that use cases for intelligent automation are growing across banks and credit unions alike, such as fraud and lending.

Affirm and FICO earlier this year took the first steps to incorporate buy now/pay later loans into consumer's credit reports. But it will be some time before lenders start making credit decisions based on the short-term installments, even if holdouts like Afterpay and Klarna decide to report to the credit bureaus.

The Ohio-based bank opened its first branch in Alabama, with plans to open 14 more over the next three years.

With its acquisition of a Cleveland-area bank still in the works, the Cincinnati-based bank struck a deal that would provide its first retail presence in Chicago.

Amid waning federal support for community development financial institutions and minority depository institutions, a program launched by two banking trade groups is beginning to generate a steady stream of deposits for mission-focused lenders.

As regional bank consolidation heats up, Comerica, First Horizon and Banc of California are among the institutions that analysts see as the most likely targets for takeovers.

Junk bonds made Michael Milken the most important and richest person on Wall Street. But they caused many large thrifts to fail. Had he listened to his professors and pursued his Ph.D. in 1970, his legacy might have been different.

Revenues were up for the quarter, but stock compensation-related expenses brought the neobank to a negative net income.

In this week's banking news roundup: Fulton Financial's Angela Snyder announces plans to retire as president of the Lancaster, Pennsylvania-based bank; Columbia Banking System in Tacoma, Washington, finalizes plans for its latest acquisition; Flagstar Financial opens its first private banking office in Florida; and more.

Slashing capital requirements for the largest banks shows where the Federal Reserve's priorities lie — and it's not with community banks. This will make it even harder for small banks to compete with their larger peers.

We've just lived through a repeat of Operation Chokepoint, the federal effort to deny banking services to disfavored companies and individuals. We must know the full story so it can never happen again.

Berkshire Hills Bancorp and Brookline Bancorp are eyeing a September closing for their merger of equals, to be followed by a phased rollout of the new Beacon Bank & Trust brand.

Coastal Community Bank reported smaller profits in the second quarter as it prepared for a growth spurt. "We think we're winning the right business," said CEO Eric Sprink.

The online lender reached profitability ahead of schedule with a boost in loan volumes and increased its outlook for the year despite macroeconomic uncertainty.

Industry veteran Chris Ward has been tapped to lead the Canadian bank's new U.S. small-business banking department. "It's absolutely a growth opportunity," he said.

In an effort to compete with the vast resources of big banks, credit unions are partnering with fintechs to deliver banking products designed for children.