Decreased funding for Community Development Financial Institutions and the declawing of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. are top of mind for bankers.

The deal was highly vetted with regulators following the publicly traded company's failure to obtain approval in a past agreement, an executive said.

Here's what bankers should know about Trump's recent crypto reserve moves, Evolve Bank's continued fallout, artificial intelligence and other technology news.

The $381 million deal for Alabama-based Southern States Bancshares would give FB entree to the sprawling Atlanta market. CEO Christopher Holmes said the bank would likely focus on nearby suburban communities initially.

The deal, expected to close by the end of 2025, will place Mr. Cooper CEO Jay Bray as president and CEO of Rocket Mortgage.

The top five bank holding companies have combined business loan portfolios of more than $2.6 trillion as of Dec. 31.

BMO hired former CEO of Citi Private Bank Halé Behzadi to accelerate the bank's growth strategy in California; Pennsylvania's Linkbancorp received regulatory approval to sell its New Jersey operations to a credit union; Dream First Bank announced plans to gain branches throughout Oklahoma; and more in this week's banking news roundup.

The Mississippi lender said regulators have signed off sooner than expected on its $103.6 million acquisition of First Chatham Bank. The bank's CEO and deal advisers said the speedy approval bodes well for future M&A.

The looming initial public offering from Swedish payments firm Klarna comes in the foreground of tariff uncertainties and inflationary pressures.

The top five bank holding companies have combined total consumer loan portfolios of more than $1.95 trillion.