The avoidance of one of the harsher economic scenarios is good news for banks, which are also contending with tighter profit margins and increasing competition for customers. But loan growth and credit quality could be at risk.

Merchants Bancorp says it will sell a total of four branches to two buyers and focus more on its core residential mortgage lending business. Banks of all sizes have been pruning branch networks in recent years.

As the Latino population in the U.S. expands, so does the business case for banks and credit unions that want to tailor services for this audience.

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 Department of Justice cited American Bank of Oklahoma's lending record, as well as racially inflammatory emails it claims bank employees forwarded, in support of its redlining claims.

Followers of Islam cannot pay interest on loans. Androscoggin Bank figured out a way to structure a new product that addresses that challenge and paves a path to more homeownership.

Forget special offers, ubiquitous branches and promises of convenience. Younger clients want to see state-of-the-art technology and hear good things from friends and family, according to a recent Arizent survey.

Banks pay millions of dollars each year to have their names become part of the lexicon of sports-obsessed Americans. Here's a look at the largest deals, which span pro baseball, football, basketball, hockey and soccer.

Banking and credit union regulators encouraged compassionate treatment of customers in Hawaii communities hit by wildfires. They also vowed to grant expedited approvals of temporary banking facilities, be flexible in compliance matters and provide other support to financial institutions.

The credit-reporting agency was fined $650,000 for sending customers marketing emails without an option to unsubscribe. Financial institutions are subject to the same law, called the CAN-SPAM Act.

The company is rolling out a special-purpose credit program to help address what it describes as "the biggest barriers to achieving homeownership." Such programs are gaining popularity among banks.

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?

Gateway First Bank, a former nonbank home lender, rode the pandemic era's mortgage wave to No. 1 on American Banker's latest list of top-performing banks based on full-year 2022 data. Now it has to cope with the housing market slowdown.

Michigan State University Federal Credit Union will open five branches in the Windy City to serve the more than 10,000 members and potential members living there. This marks the first time that the institution has expanded beyond its home state.

The recent conversion marked one of the final steps in the $8 billion acquisition, first announced in 2021. U.S. Bank still anticipates up to $900 million in cost savings and a breadth of opportunities to expand revenue from the transaction.

Several community banks noted an uptick in problem loans in second-quarter earnings reports. Small lenders should brace for more of this, industry observers noted.

The average credit union member had saved $286 less in March compared to a year earlier. That was the largest per-member drop in credit union history, fueled by rising costs of living and more aggressive competition.

Eligible customers would receive a credit of up to $5,000 that can be put toward expenses like closing costs, or used to secure a lower interest rate. It's the latest example of a bank launching a program aimed at extending credit to minority borrowers.

Adjusted for inflation, consumer spending has largely stalled after surging at the start of the year. Delinquency rates, meanwhile, are ticking up. 

Eligible borrowers would receive a credit for up to $5,000 to pay for expenses like insurance, taxes and closing costs. The program comes months after fair-lending advocacy groups criticized KeyBank for its low rate of lending to Black borrowers.