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 the FDIC in February 2022. Mark Jacobs, former Houston area president for Regions Bank, would

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 company’s president and CEO, will remain in a senior leadership role. “What an exciting time

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 renegotiating certain third-party contracts and reducing corporate office space by terminating leases. The company said

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 added. Synapse reached profitability and became cash flow positive last year. Streamlining operations should make

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 better than Leigh Brady,” Chris Ayers, the credit union’s chairman, said in the release. “She

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 basis points. The strategy should allow for an exit at “full value” compared to selling

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 to TechCrunch. Majority has offices in Houston and in the Florida cities of Miami, Orlando

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 expand our partnership with Chime, as it solidifies our dedication to driving the future of