Deposits

Shifting from earlier plans, the FDIC has established a special committee to investigate allegations of harassment and a toxic workplace culture at the agency. It will be led by directors Jonathan McKernan and Michael Hsu and may include as many as three nonvoting members from outside the agency.

Bankers are hopeful that several factors could strengthen profits next year, including higher loan demand and more stable funding costs as the Fed holds the line on — or even lowers — interest rates.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. has finalized a special assessment that is slightly pricier than originally proposed for banks with uninsured deposits of more than $5 billion. Trade groups voiced concerns that the largest banks are paying to clean up a mess created by regional banks.

Bank failures last spring forced many startup businesses to shift where they store their cash. JPMorgan Chase appears to be the top beneficiary, but other banks say they are just as eager to reel in deposits and do more business with the innovation economy.

The bank was recently sued by customers who say they were misled into thinking that their savings accounts were earning competitive rates. Capital One responded with a series of arguments for why the case should be thrown out.

Longtime customers of Capital One's online banking arm thought they were getting the best possible rate, according to a lawsuit. Little did they realize, they say, that they needed to open a new account in order to benefit from interest rate increases.

Both loans and deposit balances have stabilized since the North Carolina bank acquired parts of the failed Silicon Valley Bank, paving the way for better-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings guidance. The only blemish in the third quarter, one analyst said, was credit quality.

The Hicksville, New York, company beat analysts' expectations on net interest income, but a pair of souring office loans contributed to a 68% increase in nonperforming loans from the prior quarter.

"We'll be taking steps to offset expense pressures," CEO Curtis Farmer told analysts after the company reported an 11% year-over-year jump in costs and falling profits.

High deposit costs and low-yielding assets weighed on the company's net interest income, which fell to its weakest level since the first quarter of 2017. But Key executives predicted that a turnaround is coming soon.