Commercial lending

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray has revived an ongoing dispute between banks and fintech firms over screen scraping, a method certain companies use to obtain access to consumer bank records.

The online lender is entering the car-loan market at a time when some banks are scaling back and regulators are sounding the alarm about deteriorating underwriting standards.

Bizfi, a New York-based online small-business finance company, announced the hiring of John Donovan as its new chief executive officer.

The acquisition of Middleburg Financial would create a nearly $2.5 billion-asset bank in northern Virginia with strong mortgage originations and a growing wealth management business. It would provide an endgame for Middleburg while also making Access more appealing to potential buyers.

Signature and BankUnited had warned of weakness in their medallion portfolios for months but had resisted taking drastic measures. Things changed when large borrowers started to miss payments.

The California company plans to hire a second chief credit officer to specify monitor commercial lending and specialty lines. At least one analyst said the changes, which also include adjustments to credit policies, calls into question the company's strategic director and growth trajectory.

Signature Bank in New York reported a sharp decline in quarterly profits after suffering steep losses on its Chicago portfolio of taxi medallion loans.

MCA remains a very active area — and has become fiercely competitive.

BB&T in Winston-Salem, N.C., rode recent acquisitions to a record profit in the third quarter.

Its loan-loss provision increased largely due to energy-related loans, but Hancock Holding in Gulfport, Miss., still reported higher third-quarter profits. Lower expenses and an increase in lending for healthcare, equipment finance and mortgages were the main reasons.