Expense management

Raises for the rank and file have fueled investor complaints that banks aren’t keeping a lid on expenses. Executives say the pay increases have lowered turnover and improved customer service.

The New York-based online lender plans to spend an additional $15 million next year, largely on bank partnerships and international expansion.

The Cleveland bank gave details on a program for trimming 5% in expenses next year in order to ensure its efficiency ratio goals are met.

The custody bank was very profitable, and it raised its cost-saving forecast for year-end, but its nearly 3% increase in third-quarter noninterest expenses prompted an investor backlash.

Strong net interest income and other factors made up for a drop in investment banking and other noninterest income at the Atlanta bank, which reported double-digit earnings growth.

Commercial and industrial lending rose 8% in the third quarter at the Cleveland bank, but other factors drove its double-digit gain in profits as overall loan growth was modest.

The Dallas bank has picked a bad time to shift from cost-cutting to expansion as big banks are in a commercial lending funk.

The largest U.S. bank's strong third quarter did not insulate its leaders from being pressed about the downside of pricey investments in technology, whether capital rules make commercial lending growth hard for big banks to achieve, and whether another economic downturn is edging closer.

Banks’ tab to fight hackers rose 9% from last year by one measure. Investors want them to rein in tech investments, but security experts say the crooks are getting smarter and smarter.

The cuts are part of a broader effort to trim expenses by roughly $3 billion a year by 2020.