Mobile banking

Well before the mobile payments explosion, incumbents were already focused on how to respond to nonbanks "piggybacking" on banks' payments infrastructure. As the consultant behind a 1994 banking industry report on the threat put it, "there is no time for delay."

Consumers, especially millennials, increasingly prefer to do everything on their mobile devices, including signing up for services. But as banks start to open accounts for people whom their employees have never met, there are plenty of questions about whether they can tell real customers and crooks apart.

Valley National Bank in Wayne, N.J., has appointed former PNC executive Robert Bardusch to be its chief information officer.

When it comes to earning consumer loyalty with user-friendly mobile banking tools, everyday interactions can matter more than momentous ones.

The San Francisco bank isn't interested in making splashy investments in technology. At an investor day event Tuesday, Wells executives said they would focus on taking incremental steps to reduce costs and improve customer experiences.

Silicon Valley Bank in Santa Clara, Calif., has launched a program that lets new customers sign up for accounts using electronic signatures.

Many see the future of financial services being powered by partnerships between banks and fintechs, but both sides need to first make sure they understand themselves and what they want.

Banks have stumbled in their forays with wearable technology. Now the leading maker of personal fitness trackers plans to add contactless payment capabilities to the devices.

Banks are trying to upgrade tech offerings, from mobile banking to bill pay. But that's easier said than done, in part because the biggest core processors use their dominant market share to restrict access to banks' networks. They do this, in part, because they offer their own competing tech products.

Technology leader BBVA Compass has been ahead of the pack in real-time payments, neobanking and fintech investing. Manolo Sanchez shares his vision for next steps: the bank's developing API marketplace and "Uberized" digital banking.

Banks have a hard time figuring out millennials, those born between the early 1980s and 2000. Many millennials don't remember a world without the Internet, plenty entered adulthood during the thick of the financial crisis and the generation is broadly considered one willing to vote with its feet. Several firms have tried to demystify millennials for bankers. The following is a look at some of the data.

Sallie Krawcheck unveiled Ellevest, a digital investment platform for women and the latest of her female-oriented ventures, on Wednesday.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.’s request for input on mobile financial services allows banks to promote how their mobile app helps the underserved, which is a plus when seeking merger approval.

Hefty investments in customer-facing technology such as person-to-person payments, mobile check deposit and fingerprint recognition have given big banks a decided edge in attracting and retaining younger consumers.

Add HSBC to the list of banks offering Touch ID authentication services to mobile banking customers.

TransferWise, which has been developing an anti-bank brand, now says it wants to partner with banks to expand its reach in the U.S.

Pressure is building on financial services providers to develop more merchant-centric loyalty programs to fight declining interchange revenue, and U.S. Bank is testing one approach in Lawrence, Kan.

As smartphone-carrying baby boomers retire, banks can no longer ignore seniors' unique digital banking needs.

Varo Money, a mobile-only startup that focuses on financial health, announced Monday it has raised more than $27 million. The global private equity firm Warburg Pincus led the round.

PNC recently held an API Fest where it asked its employees to pitch customer innovation ideas. With the move, PNC joins a growing number of U.S. banks embracing the possibility that open APIs offer.