Banking

Despite a deregulatory push under Trump, cannabis banking remains hindered by legal uncertainty. The path forward under the current administration is not much clearer than under the last, but some cannabis banking experts are cautiously optimistic.

Artificial intelligence is helping banks and credit unions reduce friction points in their customer experiences and more, per new research from American Banker.

Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte should direct the agency to examine credit scoring models based on cash flow as a complement to existing systems.

The continued investment in branches is a continued investment in bankers. A well-trained, motivated banker turns a physical location into a relationship hub.

The Dallas-based bank is the subject of a scathing new report by HoldCo Asset Management, which says it should take advantage of current market conditions to sell itself. The investment firm accused Comerica's management of making poor decisions and failing to address its lagging stock price.

The Pennsylvania-based bank will continue to lean into its digital assets payment platform now that the GENIUS Act has become law. Its incoming CEO says he's not concerned about new entrants.

BankUnited hires Wells Fargo's James Mackey to be its new chief financial officer; Ponce Bank President and CEO Carlos Naudon is named chairperson of the Community Development Bankers Association; Jefferson Bank announces the retirement of longtime President and CEO Danny Butler; and more in this week's banking news roundup.

Though loan growth was soft in the second quarter, the Raleigh, North Carolina, regional bank is seeing some hope for a second-half pickup. Meanwhile, it benefited from a 2% gain in net interest income.

The student loan giant fell far short of Wall Street's expectations, but its leaders say President Trump's "Big Beautiful Bill" is likely to bring it billions of dollars in new business.

The Long Island-based company's second-quarter net loss was the seventh consecutive quarter in which it has reported a net loss. CEO Joseph Otting remained optimistic Friday about the bank's future, saying it should return to profitability in the fourth quarter.

Eagle Bancorp in Maryland took a major quarterly loss due to challenges in its office loan portfolio. It's one of many banks working to trim down their commercial real estate loan books.

The two Southeast banks agreed to combine in a transaction valued at $8.6 billion. Synovus CEO Kevin Blair would be chief executive of the combined bank, but a slim majority of board members would come from Pinnacle.

Flagstar Bank wants to merge its holding company into the bank, which would cut $15 million in annual expenses and eliminate regulatory oversight by the Federal Reserve, leaving the OCC as its primary regulator. The bank's CEO, Joseph Otting, is a former comptroller of the currency.

Fifteen banks have failed since 2019, with the most recent one occurring on Jan. 17.

A coalition of consumer groups sued the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and acting Director Russell Vought for refusing to implement a statutorily mandated small-business data collection rule that is already tied up in litigation.

Growing loans was a tall order in 2024, but banks that could do just that were able to outperform their peers.

Among banks with between $10 billion and $50 billion of assets, those that targeted narrow lending markets rose to the top.

The House Financial Services Committee passed a number of bipartisan banking bills with wide margins, suggesting a growing consensus on how to handle issues like deposit insurance, de novo bank formation and the Federal Reserve's discount window.

Complaints to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau have skyrocketed in the first half of 2025, due in part to an increase in payment scams generated by social media that target peer-to-peer payment platforms such as Zelle, Venmo and other apps.