Brainard leaving Fed for National Economic Council
Lael Brainard will resign from the Federal Reserve after being appointed the new director of President Biden’s National Economic Council. Brainard, who joined the Fed in 2014 and has served as vice chair since May 2022, made the announcement in a late-day press release on Tuesday. “Lael has brought formidable talent and superb results to […]
Citizens Alliance to buy Granite Mountain in Montana
Citizens Alliance Bank in Clara City, Minn., has agreed to buy Granite Mountain Bank in Butte, Mont. The $1.2 billion-based unit of Forstrom Bancorp. filed its application with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. on Monday to buy the $135 million-asset Granite Mountain. The deal is expected to close later this year. Neil Bolton, Granite Mountain’s […]
Trico in Calif. discloses cybersecurity incident
Trico Bancshares in Chico, Calif., is dealing with a cybersecurity incident. The $9.9 billion-asset company disclosed in a regulatory filing that it recently shut down its networked systems after detecting unusual activity. Several of Trico’s internal bank systems are offline, including email, telephones and its customer service/call center. The company said it is working to […]
United Community in S.C. set to buy First Miami
United Community Banks in Greenville, S.C., has agreed to buy First Miami Bancorp in South Miami, Fla. The $24 billion-asset United said in a press release that it will pay about $115.9 million in stock for the $1 billion-asset First Miami. The deal, which is expected to close in the third quarter, priced First […]
Northpointe in Mich. to exit correspondent lending
Northpointe Bank in Grand Rapids, Mich., is exiting the correspondent lending business. The $4.4 billion-asset bank plans to focus more on retail lending, mortgage warehouse financing and specialty loan servicing, according to HousingWire. Fundings will stop on April 28. “Due to the significant contraction of the overall mortgage industry, we have made the difficult decision […]
TD, First Horizon push back merger deadline date
TD Bank Group in Toronto and First Horizon in Memphis, Tenn., have extended the deadline date for their planned merger. The companies said in a press release that the date had been moved from Feb. 27 to May 27 as they finalize a community benefits plans and wait for regulatory approval. TD had already acknowledged […]
First NBC founder found guilty of bank fraud
Ashton Ryan, former CEO of First NBC Bank, has been found guilty of bank fraud charges that contributed to the New Orleans bank’s failure in 2017. A court found Ryan guilty of all 46 counts against him, according to multiple media reports. Ryan had been accused of approving loans for borrowers that he knew couldn’t […]
Northwest in Ohio forms commercial finance group
Northwest Bank in Columbus, Ohio, has formed a commercial finance group. The $14 billion-asset bank said in a press release that the group will focus on business aviation, long-haul trucking, inland and offshore marine financing and general equipment loans to large and midsize companies. The group will operate across the eastern United States. Lee Palm […]
Affirm relying less on Cross River for loan originations
Affirm Holdings in San Francisco has reduced its reliance on Cross River Bank in Teaneck, N.J., to originate loans. The fintech, which focuses on Buy Now, Pay Later products, disclosed in its quarterly filing that, as of Jan. 31, most of the loans originated through its platform are being handled by Celtic Bank in Salt […]
Wells to pay $300M to settle shareholder lawsuit
Wells Fargo agreed to pay $300 million to settle a class-action lawsuit that claimed the San Francisco company did not tell investors it had knowingly charged unnecessary auto-collision protection insurance. The settlement, which needs to be approved by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, was disclosed in a press release by […]
SVB promotes execs to lead key verticals
SVB Financial Group in Santa Clara, Calif., has promoted several executives to lead key verticals. The $213 billion-asset company said in a press release that Ashraf Hebela had become head of technology and healthcare banking. Hebala, who previously served as head of startup banking, succeeded Dave Sabow, who was named CEO of Silicon Valley Bank […]
Black-owned bank in Ohio set to be year’s first de novo
Adelphi Bank, a black-owned de novo in Columbus, Ohio, is poised to become the first bank to open in 2023. The bank was cleared to open by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. on Jan. 18. Organizers were required to raise about $17.7 million when they received conditional FDIC approval last May. The group initially filed […]
Fintech partnership triggers CRA downgrade for TAB Bank
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. lowered the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) rating for Transportation Alliance Bank, reflecting an issue with one of the Ogden, Utah, bank’s fintech partners. The $1.2 billion-asset bank’s rating was lowered from “satisfactory” to “needs to improve.” The agency did not identify the fintech, which apparently ran afoul of a section […]
Missouri BHC combines three of its banks
Country Agencies & Investments, a bank holding company in Odessa, Mo., has merged the three banks it owns. The BHC merged Commercial Bank of Oak Grove and La Monte Community Bank into its Bank of Odessa. The consolidation took place in January, according to the Kansas City Business Journal. The consolidation created a bank with […]
WeStreet FCU to buy two Okla. bank branches
Fidelity Bank in Wichita, Kan., plans to sell two branches in Oklahoma to WeStreet Federal Credit Union in Tulsa, Okla. The $3 billion-asset Fidelity applied with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to sell the locations, according to a legal notice. The branches had a total of $27.1 million of deposits in mid-2022, according to FDIC […]
CF Bankshares in Ohio expanding commercial bank services
CF Bankshares in Columbus, Ohio, plans to add several new commercial products in coming months. The $1.8 billion-asset company said in a press release that it will introduce swap fee services, cash management products and services and a new business credit card later this year. CF has also been making a push into Small Business […]
Republic First discloses bank president’s departure
Republic First Bancorp in Philadelphia has parted ways with its bank president. The $5.6 billion-asset company disclosed in a regulatory filing that Andrew Logue also stepped down as its chief operating officer on Jan. 31. Republic First said that Tom Geisel, its president and CEO, had succeeded Logue as bank president. Logue had served as […]
BayFirst in Florida lines up CEO succession
BayFirst Financial in St. Petersburg, Fla., will have a new CEO in 2024. The $939 million-asset company said in a press release that Anthony Leo will retire at the end of this year, though he will remain a director and special counsel for strategic matters. Thomas Zernick will succeed Leo as CEO. Zernick, who became […]
Clackamas FCU in Ore. rebrands as Embold
Clackamas Federal Credit Union in Oak Grove, Ore., has rebranded as Embold Credit Union. The $612 million-asset credit union said in a press release that the new name reflects its expansion into five neighboring counties in August 2021. Embold worked with Strum Agency to select the new name.
Comerica in Dallas forms national M&A advisory team
Comerica in Dallas has formed a national investment banking group within its Comerica Securities unit. The $85 billion-asset company said in a press release that the new team will offer M&A and private placement advisory services to its commercial and wealth management clients. Jack Maier, head of investment banking, will lead the group. “As a […]
Upstart laying off a fifth of its workforce
Upstart Holdings in San Mateo, Calif., is the latest fintech to lay off a large percentage of its workforce. The company disclosed in a regulatory filing that it will cut 20% of its staff, or roughly 365 people, by March 31. The move is designed to reduce operating costs, streamline operations and return the company […]
First Bank of Baldwin in Wisconsin rebrands
First Bank of Baldwin in Wisconsin has rebranded as Pillar Bank. The $244 million-asset bank made the announcement on its website. The new name reflects expansion into new markets, including a branch that will open in Chippewa Falls, Wis., on March 1. “We felt it was time to change our name to better reflect our […]
Proposed Calif. bank gets conditional FDIC approval
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. has given conditional approval for organizers to form Icon Business Bank in Riverside, Calif. The FDIC said in its order that organizers must raise at least $22.7 million before they can open the proposed bank. Carpenter Acquisition Corp. applied with the FDIC in May 2022 to form Icon, which would […]
Community Bank System in NY repositions its balance sheet
Community Bank System in Syracuse, N.Y., has repositioned its securities portfolio. The $15.8 billion-asset company said in a press release that it sold $786 million of debt securities at an after-tax loss of about $39.6 million. Community Bank System said it used proceeds from the sale to pay off wholesale borrowings with a […]
Timberland in Wash. selects insider as new CEO
Timberland Bancorp in Hoquiam, Wash., has a new CEO. The $1.8 billion-asset company disclosed in a regulatory filing that Dean Brydon had taken over the role, succeeding Michael Sand, who retired. Brydon was also added to Timberland’s board, while Sand will remain a director. Brydon had been the company’s president and chief financial officer. Jonathan […]