Financial institutions

The Richmond, Virginia-based bank expects to build 10 branches in Raleigh and Wilmington, North Carolina, over the next three years. M&A is on the back burner as the company also works to capitalize on its recent acquisition of Sandy Spring Bank in Maryland, CEO John Asbury said.

A cohort of more than 100 Republican members of Congress sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent urging the administration to protect and fund a community lending program that has been gutted despite its legal mandate and Bessent's backing.

The president of the planned Georgia Skyline Bank says he's cautiously optimistic that his group can raise $35 million of startup capital in time for an opening early next year.

Senate Banking Committee ranking member Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., is urging the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. not to approve new Industrial Loan Company charters until Congress passes a law subjecting ILCs to bank holding company rules.

Six trade groups warned the administration layoffs and funding freezes could dampen lending, threatening the administration's goal of economic growth.

The Bank of New York Mellon had 117 different AI solutions in production at the end of September, Chairman and CEO Robin Vince said. That's up 75% from the second quarter.

Treasury laid off all of its Community Development Financial Institution Fund staff on Friday, with the reduction in force notices saying that the department plans on abolishing the fund.

Community Development Financial Institutions grew rapidly in recent years. Now, though, they face a slowdown. All CDFIs will have to get leaner and more efficient. For many, mergers might be the best solution.

The Office of Management and Budget issued reduction in force notices to Treasury staff working in the Community Development Financial Institution office Friday, saying that the layoffs are necessary to "implement the abolishment" of the fund.

The Office of Management and Budget has prevented billions of dollars from flowing to community development financial institutions, preventing those funds from supporting housing development.

The CDFI Fund is updating definitions of eligible activity to be considered for the funds, including removing climate-focused financing and references to race and ethnicity.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau received pointed pushback from banks in their public comments on a proposed rule that would slash the number of nonbanks being supervised in four key markets.

The CEOs of Pinnacle Financial Partners and Synovus Financial — two banks that recently announced a deal to join forces — say they've ironed out all the critical sticking points that bedeviled previous mergers of equals.

A cohort of U.K.-based fintech founders are fundraising to launch a digital bank for high net worth individuals, known internally as "Project Arnaud."

Organizers of the planned Portrait Bank say they're well ahead of initial capital-raising goals as they near completion on leasing a property to serve as headquarters

Community development financial institutions have a long history of providing vital economic lifelines to communities across the country. Credit unions have always been an important part of that story.

The leader of a major credit union trade group takes issue with a recent BankThink article questioning credit unions' ability to operate as federally recognized Community Development Financial Institutions.

Four years after its launch, the Mission Driven Bank Fund has ended its fundraising well short of its original $500 million target. Still, organizers are hopeful that the fund's performance will attract other investors to the sector.

A proposed rule published Tuesday in the Federal Register would limit the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's ability to designate nonbank entities for supervision.

Congress should hold hearings to investigate whether credit unions really qualify to operate as tax-advantaged Community Development Financial Institutions.