Corporate finance

Institutions like BMO Financial Group and Bank of Nova Scotia saw earnings bogged down by increased loan loss provisions and higher tax rates.

The Honolulu-based bank is taking a $19.7 million pretax loss to rid its balance sheet of low-yielding investments. It joined a parade of banks that have made similar moves.

The Federal Reserve's interest-rate cut came too late in the third quarter for banks to capitalize on. Leaders say the fourth quarter will yield better growth.

The Green Bay, Wisconsin-based bank will record a fourth-quarter loss after agreeing to sell $3 billion of low-yield loans and mortgages. The moves leave the bank well-positioned for 2025, CEO Andy Harmening said.

The Toronto-based bank suspended its medium-term growth targets and announced a full-scale review of its strategies following historic anti-money-laundering failures.

The Toronto-based bank set aside CA$1.5 billion in its fiscal fourth quarter to cover potentially bad loans. Executives say higher-than-normal impaired losses could persist next year.

The Los Angeles-based subsidiary of Royal Bank of Canada posted its strongest performance in six quarters.

The availability and visibility of Bank On-certified accounts, which aim to expand banking access, is contributing to a decrease in the percentage of U.S. households that are unbanked, according to bankers and government officials.

The Canadian bank fell short of analysts' expectations on non-interest income partly because of a higher-than-anticipated tax rate. Scotiabank's results also included a one-time impairment charge related to its investment in Bank of Xi'an Co. in China.

The growth in mobile banking has lowered barriers to accessing the banking system, but the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s National Survey of the Unbanked and Underbanked released Tuesday reveals that minority households are still disproportionately underserved.