Banking

Small lenders across the country, including Forte Bank in Wisconsin, promoted and recruited chief executives in recent weeks.

The top five bank holding companies have combined business loan portfolios of more than $2.6 trillion as of Dec. 31.

Javice sold her student-aid startup, Frank, to JPMorgan in 2021. Two years later, the bank accused her of creating fake profiles to boost the number of customers.

In a surprise move, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said that it will not enforce or supervise lenders for the final payday lending rule. The bureau also plans to  narrow the scope of the rule.

The bank now offers personal loans up to $50,000 to State Farm customers, the latest step in its effort to broaden its customer base by teaming up with other companies.

BMO hired former CEO of Citi Private Bank Halé Behzadi to accelerate the bank's growth strategy in California; Pennsylvania's Linkbancorp received regulatory approval to sell its New Jersey operations to a credit union; Dream First Bank announced plans to gain branches throughout Oklahoma; and more in this week's banking news roundup.

The midyear fee hike was necessary to reverse a revenue shortfall in the agency's 7(a) program, according to Administrator Kelly Loeffler.

The San Francisco bank announced Monday that it has shed its fifth regulatory order this year — this one related to loss mitigation practices in its home lending business.

A new Office of External Relations and Strategic Partnerships will continue the work of helping banks develop affordable credit for consumers lacking a credit score using untraditional methods of determining creditworthiness, the agency's acting head said.

The Senate voted 52-48 to overturn the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's rule that would cap overdraft fees at many banks at $5.

After eight years of delay, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau could still make last-minute changes to the payday rule, which sweeps in the buy now/pay later industry.

The Connecticut bank disclosed that Nasdaq waived a shareholder approval requirement so it could urgently raise more than $50 million. Patriot also said its finance chief would step down.

The Trump administration's plans for student loans could open the door for banks to grab market share as borrowers seek alternatives.

For the first time in four years, more small businesses reported a drop in income than an increase, according to a survey by the 12 regional Federal Reserve banks.

The North Carolina House of Representatives this week passed a measure that would allow credit unions to expand into geographic areas with few, if any, bank branches. Banks say such a change could open the door for credit unions to expand far beyond their limited missions.

The digital bank announced upgrades to its online and mobile platforms that let users see financial information from multiple accounts on one dashboard.

The law would have expanded the state's 12% interest rate cap in a manner that would have effectively banned fintech lending in the state.

The two financial institutions issued Avit tokens on the Ethereum mainnet, marking a first in the U.S.

The Mississippi lender said regulators have signed off sooner than expected on its $103.6 million acquisition of First Chatham Bank. The bank's CEO and deal advisers said the speedy approval bodes well for future M&A.

A proposal before Congress would incentivize the creation of new banks by offering capital relief. This would give de novo banks a competitive advantage over incumbent community banks.