Corporate governance

CEO Tim Sloan and board chair Elizabeth Duke fielded tough questions Tuesday on everything from the embattled bank’s culture to its ties to the private prison industry.

The Seattle company has faced criticism from an investor over its commitment to the business, which lost money in the first quarter.

The Chicago company said its decision was largely based on intense competition, very low margins and economic changes.

It’s still not business as usual, but the decision to unify its two brands — Popular Community Bank on the U.S. mainland, Banco Popular in the U.S. territories — under a single, simpler name is a welcome sign that Puerto Rico’s largest bank is moving forward after the devastation of Hurricane Maria.

A "three-pronged" internship and management program at HUD Federal Credit Union is helping professionals across all stages of their careers, and the initiative has garnered notice from HUD Secretary Dr. Ben Carson.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., introduced a bill to create a permanent law enforcement unit to investigate criminal activity at large banks, just as the Senate was close to passing a regulatory relief package.

Despite past missteps in the U.S. mortgage business, the bank is giving it another go, bringing servicing in-house and catering to millennials and international clients here, says HSBC’s Raman Muralidharan.

The bank will spend an additional $1.4 billion on technology in 2018 to gain share and boost efficiency, executives said Tuesday. But they were peppered with questions about whether the big investment will yield a big financial return down the road.

Blue Lion Capital, which is upset with the Seattle company's growth strategy, also wants to replace two of the company's directors.

The percentage of Marion County, Fla., mortgages that are behind on payments was greater in November than it was in November 2016. This could be a residual effect of Hurricane Irma.