Strategic Insights into Banking & Fintech

Mission Driven Bank Fund goes for second investment in Ga. bank

Mission Driven Bank Fund goes for second investment in Ga. bank

The Mission Driven Bank Fund has again invested in American Bancorp in Macon, Ga. The fund did not disclose the amount it invested in American, the holding company for the $1 billion-asset minority-deposit institution American Pride Bank. “MDBF believed in us from the start, and this follow-on investment, together with the technical services grant that is helping us explore AI safely and soundly, builds on that early commitment,” Dominik Mjartan,

October 23, 2026
BNPL platform Sezzle applies to form national bank

BNPL platform Sezzle applies to form national bank

Sezzle has applied to form a national bank. The Minneapolis Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) platform applied to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to create Sezzle Bank. If approved, Sezzle Bank would offer FDIC-insured deposit accounts, checking and savings accounts, and credit products. Sezzle Bank would focus on digitally native consumers, including those new to credit and who tend to avoid

October 22, 2026
BayCom in Calif. reports lower profit following securities sales

BayCom in Calif. reports lower profit following securities sales

BayCom in Walnut Creek, Calif., reported lower quarterly profit after it purged its securities portfolio. The $2.7 billion-asset company said in a press release that its third-quarter profit fell by 78% from a year earlier, to $1.1 million. BayCom sold $106.8 million of available-for-sale investment securities at a $6.8 million loss. The proceeds were redeployed into higher-yielding, shorter-duration securities, generating a roughly 122 basis point improvement in the yield on

October 22, 2026
Seattle de novo effort aims to end landlord refinance cycle

Seattle de novo effort aims to end landlord refinance cycle

A Seattle group has applied to open a bank built around a single idea: landlords shouldn’t have to find a new lender every five to ten years. Organizers of Final Finance Bank filed its charter and deposit insurance application with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and the Washington State Department of Financial Institutions on Oct. 7. It would be a state-chartered de novo bank operating from one branch in downtown

October 22, 2026
N.H. group gets conditional FDIC approval to open Strategist Bank

N.H. group gets conditional FDIC approval to open Strategist Bank

Organizers in Bedford, N.H., received approval from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. for deposit insurance. The FDIC granted conditional approval for Strategist Bank. The group must raise $30 million before opening the bank. Organizers applied to regulators in mid-March. The bank has four organizers: Michael Simchik, Robert Pace, Dylan Cruess and James Pietro.

October 22, 2026
ConnectOne earnings dip due to planned multifamily loan sale.

ConnectOne earnings dip due to planned multifamily loan sale.

ConnectOne Bancorp in Englewood Cliffs, N.J., reported lower quarterly profit after agreeing to sell a pool of multifamily loans. The $14.8 billion-asset company said in a press release that its third-quarter earnings fell 24% from a year earlier, to $29.9 million. The company plans to sell up to $750 million in unpaid principal balance of non-relationship multifamily loans to an unnamed buyer. The transaction is expected to close this month.

October 22, 2026
Kearny in N.J. forms nonprofit banking team as deposit-gathering strategy

Kearny in N.J. forms nonprofit banking team as deposit-gathering strategy

Kearny Financial in Fairfield, N.J., created a new business line to collect deposits. The $7.8 billion-asset company said in a press release that, during the third quarter, it formed a nonprofit and independent education banking team. "This initiative broadens access to attractive relationship-based funding sources and further diversifies our deposit franchise," Craig Montanaro, Kearny's president and CEO, said in the release. The company also said its quarterly earnings rose by

October 22, 2026
Plains State in Texas to buy First National Bank of Lake Jackson

Plains State in Texas to buy First National Bank of Lake Jackson

Plains State Bank in Humble, Texas, has agreed to buy Austin Colony in Lake Jackson, Texas. Austin Colony is the holding company for the $218.4 million-asset First National Bank of Lake Jackson. Plains State Bank has $828.4 million in assets. The price wasn't disclosed.  Performance Trust Capital Partners advised Austin Colony.

October 21, 2026