Mobile technology

Instead of a hard sell, Chime, Simmons First and others are trying to convey the benefits of their products in simple terms and in a conversational tone.

The bank and insurance company continues to battle its rivals over their use of technology USAA claims it invented.

Long Game, which Truist acquired for an undisclosed sum, allows consumers to set savings goals and earn extra cash by playing casino-style lottery games.

The military-focused bank and insurance company has added more personalization and a search tool.

Through its partnership with Visa, the California credit union lets members receive digital replacements for lost cards almost instantly and add digital cards to mobile wallets like Apple Pay.

Acquiring the company, which has a namesake savings app, would allow the Silicon Valley lender to accelerate its plan to offer more consumer banking services. The deal comes less than six weeks after Oportun withdrew its application for a bank charter, which it plans to refile.

The company’s Tap to Phone technology exists in 30 countries. Visa is piloting the program in the U.S. with a six-city campaign that brings discounts, offers and grants to Black-owned small businesses.

The urgency to streamline processes during the pandemic accentuated how digitization can also drive diversity, fairness and better environmental outcomes, says Microsoft’s Bill Borden.

The Baltimore community bank is experimenting with fee-based checking accounts that bundle cellphone protection, roadside assistance and other perks with an app that makes such services easier to use. Early returns are promising.

Remote online notarization helped originators close loans amid social distancing measures, but complex local laws remain a barrier to its widespread use.

The Boston community bank and a fintech called Monit have developed an app that helps small-business owners forecast their cash flow and how certain events could affect them.

Infinity FCU sought out a merger partner after realizing that even at $338 million in assets it was too small to provide the technologies members wanted. It could be a harbinger of more deals among larger players.

Waiting for the SBA to sign off on PPP loan forgiveness; banks criticized for requiring balloon payments on loans in forbearance; how backlash over Scharf remarks affects Wells Fargo’s diversity push; and more from this week’s most-read stories.

Members are completing more of their banking online than ever before, forcing many institutions to rethink their strategies for physical locations.

Heritage Bank and Dime Community Bank are among those financial services firms taking online and app-store reviews seriously. Here’s why all banks should pay attention.

The pandemic will have an impact on customer adoption of digital technologies. Financial institutions and fintechs can achieve growth by gaining consumers' trust and changing their mindset about new platforms.

Now perhaps more than ever, banks and their proxies need to show tact when communicating with past-due borrowers.