Robinhood to buy credit card platform X1
Robinhood Markets has agreed to buy X1, a San Francisco platform that offers a no-fee credit card with rewards. Robinhood said in a press release that it will pay $95 million in cash in a move that should help it expand its product offerings and deepen relationships with existing customers. The deal is expected to […]
SEC probe of Sterling in Mich. ends with no action
The Securities and Exchange Commission does not plan to pursue an enforcement action against Sterling Bancorp in Southfield, Mich. The $2.4 billion-asset Sterling said in a press release that a letter from the SEC stated that an investigation of the company had ended. Sterling had previously disclosed that it believed the probe was […]
Citizens in RI working with fintech to expand PoS ops
Citizens Financial Group in Providence, R.I., will work with Wisetack, an embedded pay-over-time platform, to expand its point-of-sale operations. Wisetack said in a press release that Citizens Pay will offer pay-over-time options for home services projects through a network of merchants and SaaS integrations. Customers who apply through Wisetack will be eligible for installment financing […]
Greater Nevada Credit Union lines up next CEO
Greater Nevada Credit Union in Carson City will soon have a new CEO. The $1.7 billion-asset credit union said in a press release that Danny DeLaRosa will also become president on July 1. He will succeed Wally Murray, who has led Greater Nevada since October 2000. DeLaRosa, who joined the largest credit union in 2019, […]
Glass Lewis, ISS divided over First Foundation proxy fight
Two leading proxy advisory firms have taken opposing positions in a battle between First Foundation in Dallas and an activist investor. Glass Lewis issued a report encouraging shareholders to vote for Allison Ball, who was nominated by Driver Capital Management to stand for election to the $13.6 billion-asset First Foundation’s board. Ball is a partner […]
Beacon Business Bank in California has new CEO
Beacon Business Bank in San Francisco has a new president and CEO. Steve Andrews shared his appointment on his LinkedIn profile. Andrews was president and CEO of the California Bankers Association from May 2019 to November 2022. Andrews succeeded Tony Clifford, who had held the top posts at the $158.3 million-asset bank since November 2021.
Commercial BancGroup in Tenn. raises $2.8 million
Commercial BancGroup in Harrogate, Tenn., raised $2.8 million. The parent of the $1.8 billion-asset Commercial Bank completed a private placement on June 15, according to data compiled by Performance Trust Capital Partners. The data did not include information on the pricing or the investors.
SVB Securities to rebrand with leadership buyout
The management team of SVB Securities has reached an agreement to buy the health care investment bank from SVB Financial. The team, led by CEO Jeff Leerink and financial backing from The Baupost Group, will rebrand the business as Leerink Partners. “The management team and I are excited to return to our heritage of owning […]
Truist fills leadership posts for mortgages, investments
Truist Financial in Charlotte, N.C., has filled two key positions. The $565 billion-asset company said in a press release that it had promoted David Smith to lead its mortgage business. He will succeed Todd Chamberlain, who will retire on July 31. Smith, who previously worked at Keller Home Financial Services, joined Truist in January as […]
Movement Mortgage buys Massachusetts lender
Movement Mortgage in Indian Land, S.C., has acquired Mortgage Network in Danvers, Mass. Movement said in a press release that the purchase should add $2 billion in annual mortgage loan volume. It increased Movement’s national retail mortgage footprint by 250 mortgage professionals and 31 offices in 27 states. The price wasn’t disclosed. “We want to […]
Federal Reserve debuts master account database
The Federal Reserve on Friday released a long-awaited database of financial institutions seeking access to the Fed’s payments system. The database revealed 44 requests, with 26 listed as not being federally insured for deposits. Eleven requests are from entities in Puerto Rico, while four are from Wyoming. The Fed also released a list of financial […]
OceanFirst to unveil cost-cutting plan in third quarter
OceanFirst Financial in Red Bank, N.J., expects operating expenses to decline by 5% to 10% beginning in the fourth quarter. The $13.6 billion-asset company made the disclosure in an investor presentation, noting that more details would be shared in the third quarter. OceanFirst’s core noninterest expense totaled $61.2 million in the first quarter. About $13.1 […]
Customers in Pa. buys venture banking loans from FDIC
Customers Bancorp in West Reading, Pa., has acquired a portfolio of venture banking loans from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. The $21 billion-asset company said in a press release that it gained $631 million of loans, paying 85% of book value. Customers also said it hired 30 people from the group that originated the loans. […]
RBB hires East West exec as its new president
RBB Bancorp in Los Angeles has a new president. The $4.1 billion-asset company said in a press release that Johnny Lee had also been named chief banking officer. Lee previously served as head of international and commercial banking at East West Bank. He was at East West for a decade. “We are […]
F&M Bank in Tenn. selects banking vet as its president
F&M Bank in Clarksville, Tenn., has promoted a veteran banker as its president. The $1.7 billion-asset bank said in a press release that Jim Peck had taken on the role. Peck, who joined F&M as an executive vice president in 2021, succeeded Sammy Stuard, who remains chairman and CEO. Peck “is a proven leader and […]
OCC orders MUFG Union to pay $15M civil money penalty
MUFG Union Bank in San Francisco, which was sold in December to U.S. Bancorp, was ordered to pay a $15 million civil money penalty for failing to waive certain charges tied to private bank and consumer accounts. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency claimed in a May 8 consent order that the bank […]
Planned Houston de novo to have wealth management focus
A proposed de novo bank in Houston plans to have a big focus on trust and wealth management services. Organizers of Houston Bank of Commerce & Trust also plan to raise $30 million to $40 million of initial capital, according to their latest application with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. The group initially applied with […]
Investor group plans to buy Southern Bankshares in Ga.
An investor group has agreed to buy Southern Bankshares in Claxton, Ga. The group planning to buy the $160 million-asset company is led by individuals from Jacksonville, Fla. A press release gave no more information on the group. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter. The price wasn’t disclosed. Philip Williams, the […]
Atlantic Union in Va. plans layoffs, indirect auto exit
Atlantic Union Bankshares in Richmond, Va., plans to lay off 4% of its staff and exit indirect auto lending as part of a broader series of expense cuts. The $20.1 billion-asset company disclosed in a regulatory filing that the job cuts will take place by the end of July. Atlantic Union also said it is […]
BaaS platform Synapse lays off a fifth of its staff
Synapse, a Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) platform, is laying off nearly a fifth of its staff. The company made cuts in areas “that were staffed for unrealized growth or redundancy,” founder and CEO Sankaet Pathak said in a Medium post. “The current macroeconomic conditions have begun to impact our clients and platforms, affecting our anticipated growth,” he […]
SECU in North Carolina taps insider as new CEO
State Employees’ Credit Union in Raleigh, N.C., has a new CEO. The $50 billion-asset credit union said in a press release that Leigh Brady had succeeded Jim Hayes, who resigned to become CEO of State Department Federal Credit Union in Alexandria, Va. Leigh has been SECU’s chief operating officer since 2021. “No one understands SECU […]
Comerica to exit mortgage warehouse lending by yearend
Comerica in Dallas plans to “organically” exit the mortgage warehouse business. The $91.2 billion-asset company disclosed in a presentation for a banking conference hosted by Morgan Stanley that the exit will be largely completed by the end of this year. Comerica said the exit should improve capital efficiency and improve its loan-to-deposit ratio by 150 […]
Neobank Majority raises $9.8M in latest funding round
Majority, a challenger bank aimed at U.S. migrants, has raised nearly $9.8 million in its fourth round of funding. Valar Ventures and Heartcore Capital, existing Majority investors, participated in the latest round. The neobank plans to open a community meetup space in Laredo, Texas, and publish a financial handbook for Mexicans later this year, according […]
The Bancorp, Chime extend banking services agreement
The Bancorp in Sioux Falls, S.D., has renewed its banking services agreement with Chime Financial. The $7.6 billion-asset company said in a press release that it entered into a “long-term extension” that will allow it to continue to hold Chime member deposits, among other things. “We are thrilled to not only renew, but to also […]
Plains State Bank in Kan. plans acquisition, rebrand
Plains Bancshares in Plains, Kan., has applied with regulators to buy Alden Bancshares in Sterling, Kan. The parent of the $381.4 million-asset Plains State Bank also plans to rebrand as Bank of the Plains on June 20. The bank will pay an undisclosed amount of common stock to buy the parent of the $21.9 million-asset […]