Economy

There's still a month left in the federal government's fiscal year, and the Small Business Administration's 504 program is perilously close to hitting its congressionally mandated funding limit for new loans.

Dave banking app originally created to do away with overdraft charges has taken the industry by storm. It's on a mission to advance financial opportunities for all Americans. Join Penny Crosman, Executive Editor of American Banker and Jason Wilk, CEO and Co-Founder of Dave as they talk about how this app is changing the way people manage their money and what’s in store for the future of one-stop-shops for finances.

Shareholders in the troubled Mexican nonbank lender Credito Real will vote on proposals to sell the company’s U.S. operations at a meeting on Sept. 10.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency in the Trump administration had been preoccupied with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s capital position. Acting Director Sandra Thompson has shifted the agency’s focus to affordable housing and fair lending.

Institutional independence is a big part of what makes the Federal Reserve work. But quantitative easing, new forays into climate and digital currency and a blurring of the line between monetary and fiscal policy might make that independence harder to maintain.

The ranks of depositor-owned banks have been dwindling for decades, but meat distributor Charlie Cumming has a plan for starting one that will serve organic farmers. Can it work?

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated income inequality in America, and that has implications for banks and other lenders. Among those suffering most: renters, front-line workers and minority small-business owners.

Community banks have played and will continue to play a key role in supporting local economies across the country. Join us in a lively conversation with Dennis E. Nixon, President & CEO of International Bank of Commerce (Laredo, Texas) & Chairman, International Bancshares Corporation and Eddie Aldrete, Senior Vice President at International Bank of Commerce as we discuss: (1) the need for bankers and the business community to become involved in political issues. From minimum wage and issues that affect small businesses to regulatory issues that directly affect the banking industry, banking and business leaders need to be thought leaders in the public conversation and (2) how bankers can play a pivotal advocacy role in the free trade process.

The regional Fed bank said it was making the move “due to the recently elevated COVID-19 health risk level in Teton County, Wyoming.”

Bankers are hopeful that the rebound in oil prices and a spike in natural gas use are precursors to more borrowing. But banks are maintaining above-average levels of reserves in case the delta variant stifles economic momentum.

The agency signaled during the Trump administration that it would approve more industrial loan companies following an extended freeze in new charters due to policy disputes. But the thaw will likely prove temporary now that the board's makeup has changed.

Year to date Mar. 31, 2021. Dollars in thousands.

On Mar. 31, 2021. Dollars in thousands.

On Mar. 31, 2021. Dollars in thousands.

Community development financial institutions and minority-owned banks have long faced funding challenges, but billions of dollars of investment — spurred by Black Lives Matter protests — have given them an opportunity to increase lending by a factor of 10. Here’s how they can do it.

Cypress Bank & Trust is poised to open in Palm Beach, and longtime banker Stephen Gordon just launched Genesis Bank in Newport Beach. Meanwhile, two more groups have filed for de novos in August, bringing the list of pending applications nationally to 16.

This year's assessment for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is the first to take into account a January agreement between the Federal Housing Finance Agency and the Treasury Department that allowed the companies to retain more earnings.

The guarantor of mortgage-backed securities has been without a Senate-confirmed president for four and a half years. The vacancy makes it difficult for other government agencies to coordinate housing objectives, according to stakeholders.

It may seem odd that Citigroup has created an online lending platform that matches small businesses with minority-run and other banks for no financial benefit. Yet company executives and observers say it makes sense.

Small increases in commercial real estate loan volumes, particularly at midsize banks, may be indicators that the sector has weathered the worst of the pandemic. Construction loan originations, which tend to fall sharply during a recession, are leading the way.