JPMorgan Chase is easing mortgage lending standards in housing markets hard hit by the crash where prices are surging.

A sharp rise in interest rates could cause customers to cash in CDs they have purchased only 30 to 60 days prior. It should not be easily cost effective to cash any CD prior to maturity.

Patrick Pinto, a former vice president at Oxford Collection Agency, was sentenced Tuesday in federal court to two years of probation for bribing an executive at U.S. Bank. Pinto also must pay a $10,000 fine and perform 100 hours of community service.

ROCKVILLE, Md. – The National Institutes of Health FCU has hired a real estate consultant, Scheer Partners, to find it a 20,000-square-foot property near the area’s biotechnical hub for a new headquarters.

Richard Carrión's loss is Popular's gain. He would have stepped down as CEO of the Puerto Rico bank had he won the presidency of the International Olympic Committee, but he lost to Germany's Thomas Bach.

WASHINGTON — Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Johnson, D-S.D., and Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., are urging the Federal Housing Administration to change an employment eligibility requirement for borrowers looking to modify their mortgages.

Zions Bancorp. (ZION) in Salt Lake City plans to auction up to $250 million of debt through its online broker-dealer subsidiary.

Atlantic Coast Financial (ACFC) in Jacksonville, Fla., has picked a veteran of Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB) and the former Wachovia to be its new chief executive.

Evertec (EVTC), a payments business Popular started 25 years ago, filed a secondary offering with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday to sell 20 million shares, including 9 million shares currently held by the $37 billion-asset Popular.

CoBiz Financial in Denver has named new leadership at its banking franchise. Jonathan Lorenz has been named chairman of the board and Scott Page will replace Lorenz as chief executive at Colorado Business Bank and Arizona Business Bank.

Rep. Maxine Waters, the top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, said Tuesday that she is preparing to unveil an alternative housing finance reform proposal to rival more conservative legislation backed by many House Republicans.

Loan growth has become stagnant, if not declined, said most regional bank executives speaking at an industry conference this week. Many blamed continued caution by corporate borrowers.

The underwriters of Independent Bank Corp.'s (ICBP) recent offering plan to buy an additional $13.4 million worth of the company's stock.

City National Bank (CYN) in Los Angeles has combined two wealth management businesses into an investment advisory firm that manages $20 billion.

F.N.B. Corp. in Hermitage, Pa., is setting up a regional headquarters in downtown Baltimore.

FirstMerit, M&T Bank and New York Community Bancorp are buyers in different stages of the acquisition process, and their executives together provided an insightful look into the full M&A experience this week.

The rate at which banks approved small-business loans rose in August, as large banks approved the highest percentage of loan applications since the financial crisis began.

Wells Fargo, the nation's largest mortgage lender, is exploring the sale of some servicing rights because the market is flush with potential buyers and it sees little opportunity to cross-sell many servicing clients.

The U.S. unit of Chinatrust Commercial Bank is changing its name to CTBC and offering more services to attract a broader range of customers. But it faces the same challenges other community banks are encountering as they try to expand beyond their traditional boundaries.

The defendants in Tampa, Fla.-based operations that allegedly bilked consumers of millions of dollars are banned from providing the types of financial services used in their schemes. The settlement includes a $25.3 million judgment against one defendant.