Strategic Insights into Banking & Fintech

Cullen/Frost in Texas to eliminate NSF fees

Cullen/Frost in Texas to eliminate NSF fees

The list of banks curbing overdraft and nonsufficient funds (NSF) fees continues to grow. Cullen/Frost Bankers in San Antonio said on Monday that it has expanded its $100 overdraft feature to two more checking accounts. The $51 billion-asset company also said it will eliminate fees on nonsufficient and returned items for all consumer customers.  "Combined, the expansion of these features means Frost expects to forgo as much as $3.5 million per year" in

June 13, 2022
First Waterloo to buy Village Bank in Illinois

First Waterloo to buy Village Bank in Illinois

First Waterloo Bancshares in Waterloo, Ill., has agreed to buy Village Bancshares in St. Libory, Ill.The $803 million-asset First Waterloo said in a press release that it plans to complete the purchase of the $116 million-asset Village in the fourth quarter. It did not disclose the price it will pay. "We believe that we are stronger together and can better serve the needs of our customers and our communities through this

June 13, 2022
Daryl Byrd to step down as First Horizon chairman

Daryl Byrd to step down as First Horizon chairman

Daryl Byrd is stepping down as chairman of First Horizon in Memphis, Tenn. The $88.7 billion-asset company disclosed in a regulatory filing that Byrd will resign on July 1 in accordance with the provisions of his employment agreement and its bylaws. Byrd, who was CEO of Iberiabank when it was sold to First Horizon in 2020, was required to retire as an executive, employee and director on the merger’s second anniversary. Bryan

June 11, 2022
Ponce in NY receives $225 million in ECIP funds

Ponce in NY receives $225 million in ECIP funds

Ponce Financial Group in Bronx, N.Y., has received $225 million in Tier 1 capital through the Emergency Capital Investment Program (ECIP). The $1.7 billion-asset Ponce said in a press release Thursday that it sold 225,000 shares of preferred stock to the Treasury Department. “This large investment … will be transformative not only for Ponce,” Carlos Naudon, the company’s president and CEO, said in the release. The funds “will allow us to have a

June 10, 2022
Apple to finance its own BNPL product

Apple to finance its own BNPL product

Apple plans to provide the financing for its new Buy Now, Pay Later product. The Cupertino, Calif., technology company said Apple Financing, a wholly owned subsidiary, will provide the loans for Apple Pay Later. Apple will use Installments, Mastercard’s white label BNPL product. Goldman Sachs will issue the credentials for Apple to connect to merchants through Mastercard. While the investment bank is the technical issuer of the loans, Apple will hold

June 10, 2022
Wintrust raises $248M by selling common stock

Wintrust raises $248M by selling common stock

Wintrust Financial in Rosemont, Ill., has raised $248.4 million through a common stock offering. The $50.3 billion-asset Wintrust sold about 3 million shares of stock at $86 each. The company said it could use the net proceeds for a variety of purposes, including providing capital to support growth, acquisitions and reducing or refinancing debt. RBC Capital Markets and Raymond James, the underwriters, have a 30-day option to sell another 450,000 shares.

June 9, 2022
FB Financial chairman to retire

FB Financial chairman to retire

FB Financial in Nashville, Tenn., needs a new chairman. The $12.7 billion-asset company disclosed in a regulatory filing that Stuart McWhorter will retire on July 31. FB Financial said it plans to fill the vacancy before McWhorter steps down. McWhorter was appointed by Gov. Bill Lee to serve as commissioner for the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development, effective July 11. McWhorter, chairman of venture investment firm Clayton Associates, rejoined FB Financial’s

June 9, 2022
Central Bank becomes official bank of Univ. of Kan.

Central Bank becomes official bank of Univ. of Kan.

Central Bank of the Midwest in Jefferson City, Mo., has paid $3.9 million to become the official bank of the University of Kansas. The university said in a press release that the seven-year agreement will become effective on Aug. 1. As part of the deal, the $20 billion-asset Central Bank will open a branch in the Kansas Union and create a product and messaging platform with the university that includes the

June 9, 2022