The same day Provident Financial Services announced it had agreed to buy Lakeland for $1.3 billion, the seller disclosed an ongoing fair-lending investigation by the Justice Department. Provident said it has "not heard anything" that would give it pause.

The all-stock acquisition of Lakeland Bancorp, expected to close in the second quarter of 2023, would create a combined bank with more than $25 billion of assets.

Following an outcry, the Philadelphia company said its chairman and CEO, Harry Madonna — who would receive a $1 million windfall if the bank is sold — won't be part of the strategic review committee set up to evaluate any bids.

Vermont State Employees Credit Union is attracting new cannabis clients so rapidly that it had to press the pause button to add staff. Another New England lender, Needham Bank, is building its own pot banking business through acquisition.

Reports of the death of branch banking have been greatly exaggerated.

BayFirst Financial Corp. said it initiated the process of shuttering its out-of-state network of residential mortgage loan production offices.

The number of U.S. banks has dropped by two-thirds since the mid-1980s. Everyone expects this trend to continue for the foreseeable future. But at what point does M&A cool?

The country's largest banks should deepen partnerships with minority depository institutions and community development financial institutions, and regulators should facilitate that process.

The buyer said it would pay $140 million in cash and stock to acquire Citizens Bancshares. It would gain about $1 billion of assets in and around Missouri's largest city.

So far this year, banks have reported that borrowers continue to repay their loans and delinquency rates remain low. But there are signs that this may change.