Allissa Kline

The nation's largest bank, which acquired the remains of San Francisco-based First Republic following its failure this spring, has completed its plans to close 21 offices this year. But the consolidation effort is likely to continue.

The Department of Justice is recommending a sentence of 12 months behind bars for Carrie Tolstedt, a former Wells executive who has pleaded guilty to obstructing a bank examination. That's harsher than the recommendation of the U.S. Probation Office.

The racially targeted mass shooting at a Buffalo, New York, grocery store in 2022 has renewed conversations about whether banks have a duty to help segregated, impoverished communities that were shaped in part by discriminatory lending practices. What do banks owe the Black community, and what influence could they have?

The Hicksville, New York, company says its deposit base is stable and poised for growth four months after its acquisition of the failed Signature Bank, some of whose depositors fled to larger banks. Private bankers — including new hires from another failed bank, First Republic — are trying to win back lost deposits.

The Cleveland-based bank says it will submit to a racial equity audit conducted by an outside law firm, as Citigroup and Wells Fargo have previously done. The bank's decision follows a request that regulators investigate Key's mortgage lending practices for alleged redlining.

About $2.9 billion of the deposits the company obtained from the failed Signature Bank had fled as of last week, and executives are forecasting that number to double. However, they say they're "cautiously optimistic" they can lure some deposits back.

The groups also want regulators to downgrade the Cleveland bank's rating under the Community Reinvestment Act. The demands represent an escalation of a dispute over whether Key fulfilled promises it made under a 2016 community benefits agreement.

The Charlotte, North Carolina, company plans to fold the online consumer lending platform LightStream into its broader consumer business. On top of a recent pullback in bond trading, it may also make further reductions in its mortgage business and occupied real estate.

Executives at the Minneapolis bank responded to a research report that highlighted the decline in a key capital ratio after an acquisition last year. They don't plan to raise capital but aim to generate more of it from earnings in coming quarters.

William Demchak of PNC, Brian Moynihan of Bank of America and William Rogers of Truist had their total compensation reduced last year, as stock prices across the industry fell. The previous year, pay for bank chief executives had soared by more than 20%.

Two years ago, the parent company of Silicon Valley Bank promised $11.2 billion in community development support. Activists want First Citizens, which acquired much of the failed bank, to fulfill the commitment.

Lenders had started tightening as early as the fourth quarter in anticipation of a possible recession. Now, the banking crisis is driving community and regional banks in particular to hit the brakes harder, stoking renewed recessions fears.

After a bank run led to Signature Bank's failure, New York Community Bancorp bought much of what was left from the FDIC. The acquirer now faces questions about how it will persuade the remaining depositors to stick around.

Shadows loomed over Credit Suisse and First Republic early Thursday, but the sector outlook brightened after billions of deposits were pledged to the U.S. bank.

The FDIC named Greg Carmichael, who retired last year as CEO of Fifth Third Bancorp, to run a bridge bank that will hold Signature's deposits and most of its assets.

The Long Island company is closing 69% of the retail home lending offices previously operated by Flagstar Bancorp. New York Community recently acquired Flagstar for $2.6 billion.

A month after the National Community Reinvestment Coalition blasted KeyBank's mortgage lending record to Black borrowers, the group said it will send letters to the Federal Reserve and OCC about its findings.

In his first American Banker interview since becoming CEO two years ago, Thomas Cangemi talks about the company's transformation into a full-service commercial bank now that it has completed its twice-delayed acquisition of Flagstar Bancorp.

Eighteen months after the $2.6 billion deal was announced — and five days before the Oct. 31 deadline — New York Community is still waiting for regulatory approval to buy the Michigan bank. On their joint earnings call, the companies wouldn't say where the deal stands.

The rating agency has revised the long-term issuer default rating for PacWest Bancorp and its banking subsidiary, Pacific Western Bank, from "BBB" to "BBB-" and says it doesn't expect the bank's common equity Tier 1 ratio to bounce back anytime soon.