The Federal Reserve has made clear that higher rates are more a question of when, not if, but banks should let go of rate hikes being anything like they were under Alan Greenspan.

New Resource Bank has opened its first branch outside its home base of San Francisco with an eye toward furthering its green-lending mission.

John Garbarino will step aside as chairman of the $4.2 billion-asset company on Dec. 31, but he will turn over the job to a familiar face — Christopher Maher, who will remain president and chief executive, also.

The engineers on Arjun Sirrah's team are on a first-name basis with customer service staff. Those relationships help Darien Rowayton Bank's student lending arm competes with fintech companies.

Ottawa Savings Bancorp in Ottawa, Ill., is planning its second-step conversion.

Financial Institutions in Warsaw, N.Y., said it had secured enough votes to prevail in a fight with a big shareholder.

Bankers have long complained that customers are fee averse. Aspiration, a nonbank that is working with a Boston bank, has a model that is proving that some clients will voluntarily pay fees.

Chemung Financial in Elmira, N.Y., is set to form an insurance unit.

Union Bankshares in Richmond, Va., will open a loan production office after hiring a team that worked at NewBridge Bancorp.

Access National Corp. in Reston, Va., said Thursday that it has hired Mark Moore, a veteran commercial banker, as president of Access National Bank.

Prudential Bancorp in Philadelphia has agreed to buy Polonia Bancorp in Huntingdon Valley, Pa.

Franklin Savings Bank in Franklin, N.H., has lured an executive from Florida to become its next chief financial officer.

Novantas has acquired Chicago-based consulting firm Treasury Strategies.

Mackinac Financial in Manistique, Mich., has promoted an executive from its bank to become its next chief financial officer.

Branch managers are essential, but it is the manager's manager that can set the tone for the performance of a bank's branch program.

Castle Creek Capital Partners has appointed a director to serve on the board at HCSB Financial in Loris, S.C.

How Eastern Bank pulled off something few community banks have: launching a digital lending product that the 197-year-old mutual dreamed up in its innovation lab.

Summit Financial Group in Moorefield, W.Va., has agreed to buy First Century Bankshares in Bluefield, W.Va.

While there were positive signals like loan growth and improved interest margins in the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s first-quarter report card, there were also signs of trouble for the future, including larger institutions' ongoing exposure to the energy sector.

The Independent Community Bankers of America said that it agrees with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s support for “responsible innovation” in fintech but that it worries marketplace lenders have a “regulatory advantage.”