Banking

MidUSA Credit Union in Middletown, Ohio, and Heartland Federal Credit Union in Dayton have combined to form MyUSA Credit Union, which will operate nine branches in the Miami Valley and hold roughly $350 million of assets.

The $124 million buyout would give Farmers nearly $800 million of additional assets and deepen its presence in northeast Ohio.

Policymakers need to stop attacking credit bureaus and take action against credit repair firms that use dubious tactics to wipe bad debt from consumers' credit reports. Such schemes both impair banks' ability to accurately underwrite loans and further hurt real victims of identity theft.

The bank's holding company, CRB Group, has acquired PeerIQ, an online lending marketplace data provider backed by the former CEOs of Morgan Stanley and Citigroup. It's said it wants more deals like this one.

No-fee digital bank accounts subsidized by the Federal Reserve would help community banks draw in new customers and pay for technology upgrades, proponents of the idea say. But it's a hard sell to executives skeptical of government involvement in retail banking.

The fintech specializes in lending to dentists, veterinarians and other solo providers looking to grow or establish their own practice.

Sunwest Bank in Irvine, California, lets business customers open new checking accounts completely online, a technology challenge some large and regional financial institutions have yet to tackle.

The chief financial officer, Doug Fagan, will succeed Sundie Seefried, who is retiring.

Southern Bancorp, a community development financial institution, will devote part of a multimillion-dollar investment from the payments giant to developing technology that helps consumers budget, buy a home and more.

In buying the $1.5 billion-asset County Bancorp, Nicolet would become the second-largest bank in Wisconsin and the state’s No. 1 dairy lender. It's the second bank acquisition deal Nicolet has announced this quarter.

Cannabis, though still illegal at the federal level, continues to inch into the financial mainstream. Small credit unions and lenders as large as Valley National and East West have moved beyond just taking deposits from marijuana companies.

Revolut is in the early stages of a fundraising round that could value the British company at $20 billion or more.

On Mar. 31, 2021. Dollars in thousands.

Goldman Sachs Group has begun offering cash management and treasury services in the U.K. as it builds out its new transaction-banking arm.

The new calculation of borrowers’ monthly obligations will allow for a higher debt load from tuition, potentially opening eligibility to more Black applicants, according to public officials.

Thomas Caldwell has run Middlefield Banc Corp. for 26 years.

Isaac Johnson had been running the organization on an interim basis.

A growing number of companies like Klarna, Sezzle and Circle let consumers split large purchases into smaller transactions paid over time. But they say they need to offer more than one product to set themselves apart and build customer loyalty.

Michigan Legacy Credit Union is increasing its minimum hourly wage by 23% to $16, adding annual costs that equal nearly half of its first-quarter profit. The expense is worth it to compete with banks that have boosted pay, its CEO says.

They may look different, but for opening accounts, serving small businesses and satisfying consumers' need for cash, branches remain essential.