Branch banking

Metaverse aversion, car chargers at Chase branches and more in banking news this week.

The benefits Alabama One Credit Union is seeing from a migration from MPLS to SD-WAN networking help explain why other financial institutions are making the same change or have it on their road maps.

Burke & Herbert, which is based in Alexandria and has been in operation since 1852, has joined a long list of banks planting their flags in Richmond, where the overall deposit market has grown 32% in just five years.

Dontá Wilson, American Banker’s Digital Banker of the Year for 2021, succeeds Brant Standridge, who recently left the North Carolina company for a position at Huntington Bancshares.

Citing customers’ increased adoption of digital services over the past two years, banks are shrinking their physical presence, while also renovating the locations they keep — but credit unions are bucking the trend.

Key advocacy organizations are negotiating a community benefits agreement with Minneapolis-based U.S. Bancorp. Until a deal is reached, they are vowing not to back approval of the $8 billion acquisition.

Large and regional banks are not only slashing overdraft fees, they’re introducing small-dollar loans to help customers cope with income shortfalls. The policy changes made recently by just five banks could save consumers as much as $2 billion a year, according to a new analysis.

When big banks trim their branch networks, community banks operating in the same markets see a chance to pounce.

A $28 billion agreement with the National Community Reinvestment Coalition could help win regulatory approval for the acquisition of Michigan-based Flagstar Bancorp. The deal was originally expected to close last year.

The number of U.S. bank branches dropped by a record 2,927 last year as lenders both large and small sought ways to cut costs and keep pace with a digital transformation sweeping the finance industry.