Banking

In the 11 months after Fifth Third completes its acquisition of Comerica, the Cincinnati bank plans to send 13 million-to-14 million pieces of paper mail to retail customers. CEO Tim Spence says the old-fashioned method "still works," and actually has some advantages over more modern modes of communication.

The Cleveland-based bank announced changes Tuesday to its board of directors, including the appointment of a new lead independent director. Last month, activist investor HoldCo Asset Management urged the bank's board to not re-nominate its longtime lead independent director.

The newly launched digital credit union, CineFi, aims to serve creative professionals in the Atlanta area as well as First Entertainment's existing member base in Los Angeles.

Howard Green's new book Gimme a Crisis offers a deep dive into the former Scotiabank CEO's career, from bringing the NBA to Toronto to navigating 2008.

A significant majority of Americans are now living lives of permanent financial stress, and debt delinquency is on the rise. For bankers, that's a recipe for problems with profitability, and perhaps with safety and soundness.

The payments firm is hoping that planting a flag in merchant stablecoin payments now will be accretive as stablecoins gain greater adoption.

MUFG Securities Americas is designated a primary dealer by the New York Fed; Founders Bank appoints Chris Lipscomb its senior vice president and chief lending officer; the Independent Community Bankers of America names Charles Yi senior executive vice president of government relations; and more in this week's banking news roundup.

The Huntsville, Alabama-based regional bank is well positioned to defend its Southeast footprint, according to CEO John Turner. It's hiring more bankers in growth markets, it has strong brand recognition and it has a long history in its core markets, he said.

During the fourth quarter, the Buffalo, New York-based bank reported its lowest ratio of nonperforming loans to total loans since 2007.

Data collected by the Conference of State Bank Supervisors demonstrates a huge disparity in compliance costs between large and small banks. Policymakers in Washington who claim to support community banks must act to reduce regulatory burden.

Community Financial in Syracuse has agreed to purchase a small bank that's built its business model around end-of-life planning.

Goldman Sachs' fourth-quarter earnings far exceeded analysts' forecasts, overcoming losses from its consumer-focused Platform Solutions unit.

The crypto lender issued over 5,000 loans to residents without a license and failed to assess repayment ability, the DFPI said.

The investment banking giant reported an 18% increase in net income for the fourth quarter and stuck to its 2-year-old financial targets, even as it exceeded some of them.

Noelle Acheson explains how on-chain vaults, born in decentralized finance, could shape the centralized banking of tomorrow.

The Swedish financial institution adds P2P payments as it tries to bolster its neobank aspirations. Payment firms don't like the U.K.'s potential restrictions on stablecoins and more in the American Banker global payments and fintech roundup.

Customers reported failed subscription payments and support issues, though a backup system kept some basic functionality online.

The San Francisco-based banking giant reported solid gains in credit card and auto lending as credit remained in check and quarterly operating costs declined from a year ago.