Commercial lending

In the second part of a three-part conversation, CommonBond Chief Executive David Klein weighs the competing goals of gaining market share and posting a profit in the nascent marketplace lending industry.

The explosive growth of largely unregulated online lenders has given them new opportunities to prey on unsuspecting borrowers.

A small Austin, Texas, bank, formerly called Libertad, had to abandon its initial plan to target unbanked Hispanics. But it has made the most of its second chance by finding a niche in lending to real estate investors. Now it's looking to diversify.

First BanCorp in San Juan, Puerto Rico, has agreed to sell about $200 million in nonperforming loans and other assets to improve credit quality.

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Orchard Platform in New York has added two nonbank lenders to its marketplace lending service that matches institutional investors with loan originators.

Several Puerto Rican banks are dealing with a sour participation to a major utility on the island. The creditor — like the Puerto Rican government — is barred from filing for bankruptcy, complicating matters for its lenders.

Several big banks have hired environmental professionals from far outside the world of banking to make sure banks' clients aren't doing things to threaten water quality, public health or worker safety. The executives' job is to protect their banks' credit books — and reputations.

In the first part of a three-part conversation, CommonBond Chief Executive David Klein argues that large and small banks have different roles to play in the marketplace lending ecosystem.

Wells Fargo has named Rohan Kalbag head of commercial banking for northern California. Kalbag was the sales manager for commercial banking in California, Oregon, and Washington for Wells.

So far, Washington has generally smiled on tech-driven lenders such as Lending Club and OnDeck. But many in the fast-growing industry are now bracing for closer scrutiny.

The Miami area's economy is on the rebound and expanding beyond sun and fun. A new influx of money, investors and customers with international ties could feed local banks' balance sheets and top-line growth.

During a House hearing, marketplace lenders suggested that the U.S. government follow the lead of the U.K., which has set up a separate regulatory regime for the online industry.

Fifth Third Bancorp revised downward its first-quarter profit by 6%, or 2 cents per share, after the Cincinnati company booked a $30 million impairment on aircraft leases.

Top-performing community banks have found different ways to provide double-digit returns, despite numerous challenges facing the banking industry.

Prosper is already offering loans at doctor's offices while Lending Club is testing a device that would allow it to make loans on the spot at car dealerships and other retailers. The efforts highlight the need for marketplace lenders to keep innovating as competition for customers intensifies.

A community development venture in the District of Columbia supported by Citigroup, government officials and local financial institutions has partnered with loan marketplace Biz2Credit to facilitate loans to small businesses.

Companies like OnDeck and Lending Club are under pressure to keep finding new borrowers, but there are signs that customer acquisition costs are rising amid heavier competition.

Lending Club stayed on its fast-growth trajectory in the first quarter, as loan originations and operating revenue more than doubled from the same period a year earlier.

Vincent Delie, CEO of F.N.B., discusses the costs of and difficulty in complying with size-related regulations, his outlook for acquisitions and the Baltimore market.