Finance

After a year marred by the biggest US bank failures since the 2008 financial crisis, the nation's largest lender is on familiar footing — scooping up a rival, reeling in its clients and minting record profits along the way.

Funding pressures moderated in recent months, but loan charge-offs climbed. With festering concerns about a vulnerable economy, the potential for elevated credits costs could loom large over the upcoming bank earnings season.

The Bank Term Funding Program, set up in response to this spring's run of bank failures, is poised to close down in March. With the Federal Reserve now forecasting rate cuts next year, the bar for renewing the facility's authorization could be a bit higher.

Led by veteran banker Stephen Gordon, Genesis Bank in Newport Beach, California, plans to use the funds pledged by private equity firms and other investors to roll up community banks in the Western U.S.

Remote work trends and high interest rates have substantially reduced the values of U.S. office buildings. A new academic paper estimates the extent of the deterioration, suggesting that there is perhaps more stress ahead for banks than is widely anticipated.

The muni market finances the "fabric of our nation, and now, because of Citi's exit, the cost of financing for state and local governments is going to go up," a sell-side source said.

Retail customers at large banks were a bit more satisfied this year than in 2022, a new J.D. Power study finds. However, more of those same customers are moving cash to — and seeking advice from — wealth management firms and online banks.

The Michigan City company, part of a growing list of banks announcing similar overhauls, aims to sell nearly $400 million of securities and reinvest the proceeds in higher-yielding loans.

The world's largest credit union reported a 5% increase in total loans in the third quarter while lending at the largest banks was almost stagnant. However, the Vienna, Virginia, institution's charge-offs also jumped significantly.

The five banks that went under in 2023 had nearly $550 billion of assets, the largest total in a single year. Here's a look back at how they unraveled.