Federal prosecutors say Menendez, a New Jersey Democrat who sits on the Senate Banking Committee, accepted bribes in return for exerting political influence — including helping Fred Daibes, a small-bank executive who had been accused of loan fraud.

The parent companies of Cape Cod 5 and Fidelity Bank have agreed to combine under a multibank holding company called Mutual Bancorp. The bank units would keep their current names and operate independently but pool resources to improve efficiency.

Eighteen banks announced agreements to sell themselves last month. It was the most active month for bank deals since July 2022.

Boston-based Eastern Bankshares says its premium on the sale of Eastern Insurance Group will help fund the acquisition of Cambridge Trust and build a wealth management powerhouse. But some analysts point out more revenue is being sacrificed than gained.

Denver-based InBank will expand into Georgia and Arizona, part of a wider plan to seize market share and build what one executive called a top-tier SBA lender.

The combination would create a company with $27 billion of total assets, $18 billion of loans and $22.6 billion of deposits.

Bankers largely support expanding government-backed farm loan programs, and in general support continued funding for crop insurance. But politics is making swift passage of a traditionally uncontroversial bill challenging.

A movement is afoot to transfer the job of the Federal Home Loan banks to the Federal Reserve. This would be a disaster for small lenders.

Despite an industrywide rough patch, EverBank still sees promise in the niche business line. The Jacksonville, Florida, company has hired a pair of prominent industry experts to lead a new division tasked with serving investment funds.

Lenders either write down portions of soured credits or charge them off altogether to remove them from their balance sheets. Banks also set aside reserves to cover potential future bad loans. This allowance creates a buffer for lenders to absorb losses.

Merchants Bancorp says it will sell a total of four branches to two buyers and focus more on its core residential mortgage lending business. Banks of all sizes have been pruning branch networks in recent years.

Ashton Ryan Jr. was convicted on dozens of fraud and conspiracy charges connected to the 2017 failure of the New Orleans bank he founded.

After a steep sell-off early in 2023, the sector has recovered ground in summer trading as recession worries ease. But investors remain wary because loan demand is light, deposit costs are high, and net interest margins are under pressure.

The New York-based company announced the launch of a health care lending unit after capitalizing on recent bank failures to add seven deposit-focused banking groups this spring and summer.

As the Latino population in the U.S. expands, so does the business case for banks and credit unions that want to tailor services for this audience.

Jay Sidhu has run two large U.S. banks. He talks about how his Indian upbringing set him up for success and how he hopes to do the same with a new book.

Despite regulatory efforts, applications for traditional new banks often now require lengthier review periods for approval than in the last several decades. Here are some key ways to lighten this burden.

Five Star Credit Union and Michigan State University Federal Credit Union announced a combined four bank acquisitions within a few days. They're among 10 credit union agreements to buy banks this year.

When the prices of U.S. goods and services soar, the Federal Reserve tends to raise its benchmark interest rate, and commercial banks are pinched in several fundamental parts of their business.

Financial institutions in several Southeastern states had braced for impact of the Category 3 hurricane. Bank and credit union executives in Florida and Georgia say their facilities generally weathered the storm but that some communities they serve face substantial recovery efforts.