Blockchain technology is often suggested as an answer to the financial world's security problems. Banks on the Swift network are being hacked? Put those international wire-transfer instructions on a blockchain. Card-not-present fraud is up? Well then, merchants should just let people pay with bitcoin. Problem solved.

Banking activity clung to a modest level of expansion in July according to the latest reading of American Banker's Index of Banking Activity, edging up from a relatively weak reading a month earlier.

The IBA Composite Index rose to 55.4 in July compared to 54.9 in June. That June reading had been the weakest for the IBA since January.

A noteworthy contributor to the gain came from a rise in the component that tracks real estate conditions across respondents' local markets. That component climbed to a reading of 57.3, up from 54.2 in June, with bankers in the Northeast and West signaling the strongest improvements.

The July survey was not uniformly positive however. Respondents continue to report pressure on pricing for new loan business, and the July survey also saw some falloff in the pace of growth for consumer-loan applications, particularly in the South.

In addition, bankers continue to express frustration with net interest margins, a concern unlikely to abate soon given uncertainty about the Federal Reserve's plans for interest rates over the next few months.

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Eddie Bauer acknowledged that a data breach compromised credit cards used in its 350 stores during the first six and a half months of 2016.

Stakeholders must come together to make sure that artificial intelligence disrupts banking in a manner that incorporates constitutional values and provides responsible banking services to everyone.

Previous natural disasters in the Gulf region have taught banks like MidSouth, Regions and Hancock how to swing into action to help customers and manage sudden risks.

The regional bank has consolidated all of its digital operations under a single leader. Find out what he thinks about customer expectations, bots, fintechs and the coming convergence of digital banking.

Citizens Community Bancorp in Eau Claire, Wis., said it plans to close four branches in Walmart stores in mid-November.

People hold up blockchain as the answer to many security issues, including Swift-related hacks and card-not-present fraud. But distributed ledgers have vulnerabilities, too.

Kinderhook Bank Corp. in New York said Wednesday that Scott Shallo, a member of the board since 2006, succeeded Brian Kelly as chairman.

Chad Ballard, who most recently served as BBVA Compass' director of mobility and new digital business technologies, has joined PNC Financial Services Group.

Heather Cox is moving to USAA; female regulators are gaining prominence in the online lending conversation; and asset managers are still fighting sexism at work (but then again, who isn’t?).

Allied Bank in Mulberry, Ark., has been ordered to immediately raise capital or find a buyer to address its precarious capital position.

Banks in cities such as Seattle and New York are getting creative with branching, adding some that are smaller than modest apartments.

Pretty much every merger of insurers and banks since the Citi-Travelers deal has come undone, but today's conditions support new-style marriages that make sense for shareholders and customers.

United Bankshares in Charleston, W.Va., has agreed to buy Cardinal Financial in Tysons Corner, Va.

The spike in the Libor rate is a boon for banks that have lots of floating-rate loans tied to the well-known benchmark. Shifts in money market funds are the driver, with the big question being how long the run will last.

Banks have found a novel way to fend off fintech’s plans to take them down: they are funding it. A new report shows corporate venture capital investors, such as those backed by banks, made up nearly a third of funding in the second quarter.

LoanDepot, a Foothill Ranch, Calif.-based company that offers mortgages, home equity loans and personal loans, has raised $150 million in term debt financing.

The $185 million-asset bank said in a press release Tuesday that it is offering 800,000 shares of its common stock at a price of $7.50 each.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's choice for its new head of supervision and enforcement — the No. 3 slot at the agency — is raising eyebrows because of his political background and relative inexperience compared with similar positions at other regulators.