U.S. Bancorp Says CEO Kedia Will Add Board Chair Title
U.S. Bancorp announced that CEO Gunjan Kedia will assume the board chair position in April 2026, succeeding executive chair Andy Cecere. The move reunites the bank’s governance structure, giving Kedia both CEO and chair titles—a model now held by most of the nation’s largest banks. Only two of the top 20 U.S. commercial banks, both Canadian‑owned, still separate the roles. The transition follows a broader industry shift where several major banks have recently combined the two positions despite past shareholder pressure to keep them distinct.
BOK Counting on Mortgage Finance for a Boost in 2026
Bank of Oklahoma (BOK) Financial is banking on its mortgage‑finance unit to drive growth, aiming for $1 billion in commitments by the end of 2026. The bank projects full‑year loan growth in the high‑single‑digit range, up from 6.4% in 2025, with...
New York State Introduces Bill Deeming EWA a Loan
New York lawmakers introduced the Stop Taking Our Pay Act, which would reclassify earned‑wage‑access (EWA) advances as loans subject to the state’s 16% interest‑rate cap. The bill also treats any associated fee, tip, or subscription cost as a finance charge,...
Fraud Courier Sentenced for Stealing Millions From Seniors
A federal judge sentenced 23‑year‑old Indian national Atharva Shailesh Sathawane to 18 years in prison for acting as a courier in a scheme that stole more than $6.6 million from elderly investors. The fraud forced seniors to liquidate securities and purchase...
Judge Blesses Fifth Third-Comerica Deal, Shuts Down Lawsuit
A Delaware judge rejected HoldCo Asset Management's attempt to block Fifth Third Bancorp’s $10.9 billion acquisition of Comerica, allowing the merger to proceed on schedule. The decision noted no imminent irreparable harm to shareholders and emphasized the premium benefit of the deal....
What to Expect at American Banker's Inaugural On-Chain Summit
American Banker’s inaugural On‑Chain Finance Summit on March 19‑20 brings together senior banking executives and crypto‑industry leaders to discuss the accelerating integration of stablecoins, blockchain infrastructure, and tokenization. The event follows the passage of the GENIUS Act, which gave U.S....
State Regulators Optimistic About Shift in Bank Supervision
State regulators welcomed the Federal Reserve’s new supervisory memo, which shifts routine bank examinations to state agencies and concentrates federal resources on material financial risks. The three‑page guidance pulls Fed examiners out of proactive oversight of subsidiaries, promising faster, more...
Are Banks Welcoming Open Finance with Open Arms?
American Banker’s 2026 State of Open Finance Adoption report reveals that open finance is now a strategic priority for most banks, with regional institutions leading the charge. Sixty‑eight percent of regional bankers rate it as high or critical, while customer...
What FIS Has Planned After the Global Payment Deals
FIS closed a strategic swap with Global Payments, acquiring the card‑issuing technology unit while off‑loading its merchant‑technology division. The move sharpens FIS’s focus on bank clients amid rising fintech competition. In parallel, FIS announced a bank‑centric suite of agentic AI...
An Overhaul of US Anti-Money-Laundering Rules Is Long Overdue
The Treasury, led by Secretary Scott Bessent, is pushing a fundamental overhaul of U.S. anti‑money‑laundering (AML) rules, moving away from a checklist mindset toward outcome‑focused supervision. Citi’s Brent McIntosh argues that the current framework over‑prioritises technical minutiae, prompting costly account closures...
Trump Pulls Back From 401(k) Use for Down Payments
President Donald Trump signaled resistance to allowing penalty‑free withdrawals from 401(k) plans for home down‑payments during his return from the World Economic Forum in Davos. He told reporters he is "not a huge fan" of the idea, noting the strong...
Eastern Swears Off M&A Amid Activist Investor's Pressure
Eastern Bankshares’ CEO Denis Sheahan announced the bank will no longer pursue any new M&A deals, pivoting instead to organic growth and capital returns. The firm has accelerated its share‑repurchase program, buying back 635,000 shares for $12.3 million and plans another buyback...
Goldman Sachs Announces New Roles for Minnis and Wheeler
Goldman Sachs has reshaped its global credit franchise by creating a new position for veteran partner Christina Minnis as global head of the alternatives origination group. Minnis will retain her existing roles overseeing credit, asset finance and acquisition finance, reporting...
Ex-TD Employee Pleads Guilty to Helping Move $26M to Colombia
A former TD Bank employee, Oscar Nunez‑Flores, pleaded guilty to facilitating the laundering of roughly $27 million between the United States and Colombia. The plea adds to at least three insider convictions tied to TD’s historic anti‑money‑laundering failures that led the...
Community Bank Bill Moves Forward, but with some Caveats
The House Financial Services Committee approved a community‑bank tailoring bill in a 33‑21 vote, proposing to index more than three dozen regulatory thresholds to nominal GDP. By tying thresholds to economic growth rather than inflation, the legislation would exempt many...
Banks See MSR Strain Despite Strong Top-Line Results
Banks posted record top‑line earnings, yet mortgage‑servicing‑rights (MSR) valuations slipped, eroding mortgage‑banking revenue. US Bank saw an $11 million MSR valuation drop, driving a 27.8% quarterly revenue decline to $130 million. JPMorgan Chase’s net servicing revenue fell $43 million despite a modest MSR...
Asset Servicing Gains New Importance in an Increasingly Digital World
Asset servicing, once a back‑office function, is now a strategic priority for banks as AI, blockchain and a generational wealth shift reshape the industry. BNY Mellon highlights the rise of a hybrid workforce, deploying over 100 digital employees to automate...
Oportun CEO Vazquez to Step Down After Investor Pressure
Oportun Financial announced that long‑time CEO Raul Vazquez will step down by April 3, remaining as an advisor through July 3. The departure follows a two‑year campaign by activist investor Findell Capital, which accused Vazquez of costly acquisitions and a bloated cost...
Huntington Eyes a Texas-Sized Growth Spurt in 2026
Huntington Bank closed its $12.7 billion Veritex deal and is finalizing the $53.5 billion Cadence acquisition, expanding its Texas footprint to 118 branches. The Texas moves are expected to lift 2026 loan growth to 11‑12% and deposit growth to 8‑9%, adding $34 billion...
FDIC Adds Banker to Regulatory Appeals Board in Final Rule
The FDIC issued a final rule revamping its supervisory appeals process, mandating that the three‑member panel include at least one former banker alongside a supervisory‑experience member. The rule also broadens banks' appellate rights, allowing challenges to supervisory determinations that underpin...
Crypto Cards Are Booming, but What They Mean for the Future Is Unclear
Crypto‑linked cards have surged, with monthly payment volume climbing from roughly $100 million in early 2023 to over $1.5 billion by late 2025. The growth reflects a bridge between traditional Visa/Mastercard rails and digital assets, allowing users to spend crypto at any...
How Bank of America's Erica Does the Work of 11,000 People
Bank of America’s virtual assistant Erica now supports 42 million consumers and 40 000 business clients, handling roughly 2 million interactions daily. The bot relies on rule‑based natural‑language understanding and predictive analytics rather than large language models, enabling precise, low‑error transactions. Erica is...
Truist Settles 15-Year-Old Legal Saga, Causing Earnings Hit
Truist Financial agreed to settle a 15‑year overdraft‑fee class action, committing up to $240 million, including $130 million in legal fees. The settlement and $63 million in severance expenses shaved 12 cents from fourth‑quarter earnings per share, causing the bank to miss analysts’...
Ally Beats Estimates but Sees Economic Trouble Ahead
Ally Financial posted a Q4 2025 net income of $327 million, surpassing the $313.9 million consensus, while earnings per share of $0.95 fell short of estimates. Adjusted EPS reached $1.09, reflecting one‑time layoff costs and mortgage loan sales. The lender warned that...
Bank OZK Says Spike in Charge-Offs Is No Cause for Alarm
Bank OZK’s commercial‑real‑estate (CRE) portfolio saw net charge‑offs jump to 1.18% in Q4 2025, the highest since the financial‑crisis era. The bank had already doubled its allowance for credit losses to $632 million, cushioning profitability, which slipped 3.5% to $171.9 million for the...
Citizens Lays Out Tech Overhaul, Says Profit Goals Are Close
Citizens Financial Group unveiled a three‑year "Reimagine the Bank" technology program that targets $450 million in annualized run‑rate benefits, yet the bank insists its profitability goals do not depend on the overhaul. The initiative, which allocates $250 million in implementation spending and...
Fiserv Bets on Japan's Digital Initiative; Klarna Deepens Walmart Ties
Fiserv has sealed a partnership with Sumitomo Mitsui Card Company to introduce its Clover point‑of‑sale system to Japanese merchants, aligning with a government push to slash cash usage by 65% over four years. The deal, slated for late‑2026, is a...
Justices Wary of Trump's Urgent Need to Remove Fed's Cook
The Supreme Court heard arguments on President Trump’s attempt to remove Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, questioning the breadth of presidential removal power under the Federal Reserve Act. Justices expressed skepticism toward the Justice Department’s claim that the president can...
As CFPB Retreats, State AGs and Bank Regulators Step Up
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is pulling back from enforcement, leaving a regulatory gap that state attorneys general and banking agencies are moving to fill. States are hiring former CFPB staff and enacting laws such as New York's FAIR Act...
Brazen Scheme Combines Fraud, Visiting Customers' Homes
Barnegat Township Police warned New Jersey residents of a hybrid fraud scheme that combines phone spoofing with a physical courier pickup to steal debit cards. Criminals pose as bank fraud agents, claim unauthorized out‑of‑state activity, and arrange a courier to...
First Entertainment CU Launches Digital Brand in Atlanta
First Entertainment Credit Union has launched CineFi, a fully digital banking brand targeting film, TV, and other creative professionals in Atlanta and Los Angeles. Developed with fintech partner Nymbus, CineFi offers high‑yield checking and savings, round‑up savings, early direct deposit...
Bessent Tells Banks Deregulation Makes up for 10% Rate Cap
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told banks that deregulation, which he says has unlocked $2.5 trillion of extra lending capacity, should offset the impact of President Trump’s proposed 10% credit‑card interest rate cap. He emphasized that reduced compliance costs are boosting bank...
A 'K-Shaped' US Economy Augurs Ill for the Country's Banks
Gene Ludwig warns that the U.S. economy is increasingly K‑shaped, with roughly 60% of households stuck on the downward slope. Rising costs of essentials have pushed credit‑card debt to a record $1.23 trillion, while delinquency rates have edged up to 3.6%...
Gould Floats Bare-Bones Resolution Planning Revamp
Comptroller Jonathan Gould urged the elimination of Covered Insured Depository Institution (CIDI) resolution plans, arguing they lack a clear statutory basis and effectively outsource the FDIC’s receiver role to banks. He highlighted that such plans failed to prevent the 2023...
PNC's Demchak Vows to Bring the Fight From Coast to Coast
PNC Financial Services Group announced that its $4.2 billion acquisition of FirstBank will add roughly $850‑$900 million of net interest income by 2026, fueling a broader push for national scale. CEO Bill Demchak emphasized that the deal, combined with a $2 billion branch‑expansion...
Improved Credit Quality at M&T Helps Push Earnings Higher
M&T Bank posted a fourth‑quarter net income of $759 million, up 11.5% year‑over‑year, and earnings per share of $4.67, comfortably beating the $4.44 consensus. The results were powered by a sharp decline in non‑accrual loans, which fell 26% to $1.25 billion, delivering...
Upstate NY Lender to Buy Bank with Funeral-Planning Focus
Community Financial System of Syracuse agreed to acquire ClearPoint Federal Bank & Trust for $40 million in cash. ClearPoint, a niche bank focused on funeral‑planning trusts, reported a 2.31% return on assets, well above the 1.27% industry average. The acquisition will...
Bilt, Affirm Aim to Capitalize on Proposed Credit Card Rate Cap
Fintechs Bilt and Affirm are rolling out new credit products as political pressure mounts on traditional bank‑issued cards. Bilt introduced three cards with a 10% APR cap for the first year, while Affirm is preparing a rent‑pay‑later offering with real‑time...
Dip in Mortgage Rates Gives First Horizon a Boost
First Horizon’s loans to mortgage companies surged 20% in Q4 2025, adding $776 million and becoming the largest driver of its 2% total loan growth. Seasonally adjusted home sales hit a two‑year high, fueling fresh demand for warehouse financing. The bank...
Portage Takes over Fintech Investments From Point72 Ventures
Point72 Ventures is transferring roughly 40 fintech and fintech‑adjacent investments to a $280 million continuation fund managed by Portage, the fintech arm of Sagard. The move follows CB Insights data showing that 54% of Point72’s fintech holdings have declining success probabilities and...
California Penalizes Nexo $500,000 for Risky Crypto Loans
California's Department of Financial Protection and Innovation fined Nexo Capital $500,000 for offering 5,456 crypto‑backed loans to state residents without a required financing license. The loans, issued between July 2018 and November 2022, lacked any credit‑worthiness assessment and were marketed...
On-Chain Vault Services Could Give Banks an On-Ramp to Crypto Markets
On‑chain vaults are smart‑contract wallets that automatically allocate stablecoins to the highest‑yielding DeFi strategies. They provide non‑custodial, 24/7 redeemable exposure with yields ranging from 3.7% to over 7%, outpacing many traditional money‑market funds. The piece argues banks could adopt these...
Goldman Surges Past Estimates, Despite Apple Card Costs
Goldman Sachs reported fourth‑quarter 2025 earnings that topped Wall Street forecasts, posting $14.01 earnings per share and $4.62 billion net income, well above analyst expectations. Revenue slipped to $13.45 billion, missing estimates, largely because the Platform Solutions unit logged a $1.68 billion loss...
Two-Hour Outage Hits Monzo Banking Services
Monzo experienced a two‑hour outage on Jan 14, 2026 that degraded its mobile app, card payments, and transfers for thousands of customers. The disruption began at 10:31 a.m. ET and ended at 12:36 p.m. ET, after the bank fixed a core issue but did not disclose...
Fifth Third, Comerica Plan to Close $10.9B Merger on Feb. 1
Fifth Third Bancorp and Comerica plan to finalize their $10.9 billion merger on February 1, after receiving Federal Reserve approval and other regulator sign‑offs. The combined entity will hold roughly $290 billion in assets, ranking it as the 16th‑largest insured depository institution in the...
Trump's CCCA Boost Is Misguided; the Bill Would Harm Military Families
The Credit Card Competition Act (CCCA), backed by President Trump, would cap credit‑card APRs and force merchant‑selected routing, slashing interchange fees that fund rewards and specialized products. Military‑serving banks and credit unions warn the bill will tighten credit, eliminate low‑interest...
Strong Consumer Results Push Wells Fargo Profits Higher
Wells Fargo posted a $5.4 billion fourth‑quarter profit, 5.5% higher than a year earlier, and lifted full‑year 2025 net income to $21.3 billion, up 7%. The bank lifted its 2026 net interest income target to $50 billion, a 5% increase, after shedding a...
Crypto-Friendly Lender Old Glory to Go Public Through SPAC
Old Glory, a lender focused on crypto‑backed financing, announced it will go public through a merger with the special purpose acquisition company XYZ Capital. The transaction values Old Glory at roughly $300 million and is expected to raise about $200 million in...
What U.S. Bank's Innovation Leaders Liked at CES This Year
U.S. Bank’s innovation team, led by chief innovation officer Don Relyea and head of R&D Todder Moning, scouted the 2024 Consumer Electronics Show for technologies that could be integrated into the bank’s services. The bank recently launched AI and blockchain...
Trump Backs Durbin-Marshall Swipe Fee Bill
President Donald Trump publicly urged Congress to pass the Credit Card Competition Act, a bipartisan bill championed by Sens. Dick Durbin and Roger Marshall that would curb swipe‑fee monopolies. The legislation would require large banks to give merchants a choice...