Big banks are getting surprisingly good grades for customer satisfaction, despite lingering scandals and waves of new fees since the financial crisis, according to J.D. Power. Big banks' better technology and efforts to improve their customer service have off-set some of the reputational issues affecting them, J.D. Power executive Rocky Clancy explains.

The Farm Credit Administration will also withdraw a proposal that would have allowed its lenders to make investments in non-agricultural businesses.

United Bancshares (UBSI) in Charleston, W.Va., and Virginia Commerce Bancorp (VCBI) in Arlington have pushed back the deadline for their merger as they await final regulatory approval.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. took action against six banks and freed a dozen from orders in October.

New York's city council recently voted to allow campaign contributions to be made by text message.

Canada's largest lenders, whose shares soared to record highs last month, are banking on wealth management to help counter a capital markets slump and weaker consumer borrowing.

The chief financial officer of First Commonwealth Financial (FCF) in Indiana, Pa., is retiring.

Seacoast Banking Corp. of Florida (SBCF) in Stuart plans to redeem its $50 million of outstanding Troubled Asset Relief Program shares.

The insurance subsidiary of Old National Bancorp (ONB) in Evansville, Ind., is taking over a group of accounts from Wells Fargo's (WFC) insurance unit.

Bank M&A activity has been lackluster in most parts of the country. It will probably stay that way, since so many banks are too small for buyers to bother with.

Bank of America, the second-biggest U.S. lender, agreed to pay government-backed Freddie Mac $404 million to resolve mortgage-repurchase claims.

Regulatory burdens, technology challenges and long-awaited M&A top the list of what small bank leaders see in the year ahead, according to a KPMG survey. Following are some of the study's key findings.

After clashing with regulators and being blacklisted by many banks and credit unions, many emerging-payments companies are seeking a warmer welcome outside the U.S.

Bank investor Kenneth Lehman plans to buy a controlling stake in Marine Bank & Trust Co. in Vero Beach, Fla.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has taken a cautious approach to its oversight of payday lenders so far, but is likely to issue new regulations covering the industry next year, according to several observers.

Commonwealth Bancshares in Louisville, Ky., is offering a $2,500 reward for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the person who shot and killed the son of a bank employee.

Banks shouldn’t feel forced to place all their bets on one platform or another. In the shorter term, successful future models of banking will be hybrids.

Two key players in the I Works scheme that allegedly took more than $275 million from consumers via deceptive trial memberships for bogus government-grant and money-making schemes have agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that they violated federal law.

Waterstone Financial (WSBF) in Wauwatosa, Wis., has opened its first branch outside its home state.

First Internet Bank (INBK) in Indianapolis raised $29.1 million through a public offering.