Strategic planning

Small lenders across the country, including Forte Bank in Wisconsin, promoted and recruited chief executives in recent weeks.

Royal Bank of Canada executives said they plan to start originating more mortgages in the United States, and they indicated that they may ditch the City National Bank brand.

The Connecticut bank disclosed that Nasdaq waived a shareholder approval requirement so it could urgently raise more than $50 million. Patriot also said its finance chief would step down.

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 Connecticut bank said its newly minted president, Steven Sugarman, successfully led a private placement and signed a long-term employment agreement that makes him a potential CEO. David Lowery, current chief executive of Patriot, plans to step down in April.

Federal Reserve policymakers said that the U.S. economy remains on sound footing, despite recent setbacks, and that two interest rate cuts lie ahead. Bank stocks advanced on hopes for loan growth and more M&A.

The Independent Community Bankers of America wants Congress to eliminate tax exemptions for credit unions with more than $1 billion of assets, scaling back an earlier request that would have targeted the entire credit union sector.

Bankers' surveys of commercial clients have found that corporate decision-makers are less concerned about adverse tariff effects than nervous investors.

NuMark Credit Union said it would buy Lemont National Bank. After a record-setting 2024, it's only the second such credit union-bank combination so far this year.

Forecasters on an American Bankers Association panel predict continued economic growth this year, though they say President Trump's tariffs have created new inflation and recession risks.