Investments

Liberty Bank, an $11.6 million-asset lender in Salt Lake City, is the first FDIC-supervised bank in six years to be hit with the lowest Community Reinvestment Act rating possible twice in a row. Regulators identified an unspecified "illegal credit practice" during their review of the bank's performance.

The placement of Wells Fargo, JP Morgan Chase, and Bank of America on the list makes them ineligible for state and local government contracts.

Kaua'i Federal Credit Union in Lihue is launching an "economic resiliency center" for members in the Kapa'a community. It hopes to support minority-owned businesses throughout the area by providing access to housing resources and other funding.

At the embattled Republic First Bancorp, elevated legal, professional and audit fees also contributed to a nearly $10 million in first-quarter loss but CEO Thomas Geisel reports signs of progress moving past "legacy headwinds."

The Securities and Exchange Commission plows ahead with plans to boost oversight of the private fund industry. 

The National Credit Union Administration is seeking the perspective of credit union leaders in areas vulnerable to natural disasters to gauge the true scope of environmental changes and to inform best practices for managing their impact.

The Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act of 2023, introduced in both the House and Senate would allow regulated banks to work with state-legal cannabis companies.

Pandemic funding cuts may pop up in any of the four big-ticket, must-pass bills Congress will take up this year.

At the two big banks, proposed phaseouts of lending for new fossil-fuel exploration drew less shareholder support on Tuesday than they did a year ago. The results were a blow to activists who want big banks to take stronger action to combat climate change.

Bank of America hits 100% recycled-plastic card goal for Earth Day, First U.S. Community Credit Union names new CEO, Santander partners with DailyPay, and more in this week's banking news roundup.