Corporate finance

Executives said record-high commercial loan commitments in the fourth quarter validate the San Antonio bank’s decision to open more than two dozen branches in Houston and pursue a similar path in Dallas.

The credit card issuer fielded questions about its fees two days after the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced a wide-ranging review of consumer charges. Executives said they would not take a big revenue hit even in the face of new limits.

Multifamily and specialty finance loans, which were highlights during the fourth quarter, should increase further in 2022, company executives said.

The North Carolina company will also eliminate nonsufficient-funds fees as it aims to keep pace with larger rivals, including Bank of America, that have revised their overdraft policies.

The expenses jumped 33% last quarter, which was generally in line with trends elsewhere in the credit card industry. The battle for new customers is “intense,” CEO Richard Fairbank told analysts.

The French bank and New York asset management firm will buy and hold inventory to meet clients’ future needs and track materials on a new software platform.

The Florida company spent nearly $7 million in the fourth quarter on the payouts, which were made in recognition of work done during the pandemic.

U.S. bank stocks are headed for their worst losing streak in a year, burning investors who bought shares on expectations that the Federal Reserve raising rates for the first time since 2018 would boost the sector.

A few months ago bankers were more hopeful than confident about an end to depressed demand for business credit. Now CEOs at Huntington, Fifth Third, Mercantile Bank and other companies are touting strong fourth-quarter loan growth, burgeoning pipelines and local job creation as reasons for optimism.

Loans to car sellers plummeted earlier in the pandemic due to chip shortages that hampered vehicle production. But supply improvements since last fall have fueled the start of a rebound.