A pair of banks is testing new markets after hiring bankers. BankUnited in Miami Lakes, Fla., said in a press release Thursday that it opened a corporate banking office in Atlanta – its first location outside of Florida or New York. The $35.8 billion-asset company said the move is part of a “renewed effort” to expand beyond its core markets. The company hired Adam Gordon as its market executive and corporate banking

Gouverneur Bancorp in Gouverneur, N.Y., is looking to form a municipal bank in conjunction with its pending acquisition of a commercial bank. The $133 million-asset parent of Gouverneur Savings and Loan Association applied for deposit insurance with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. for the proposed GS&L Municipal Bank. Gouverneur said in the application that it hopes to form the proposed bank in advance of its purchase of the $85 million-asset Citizens Bank

Robert Sarver is retiring as chairman of Western Alliance Bancorp. in Phoenix. The $50 billion-asset company said in a press release that Steve Hilton will also retire as a director at the conclusion of its annual meeting in June. Sarver, who was Western Alliance’s CEO from 2002 to March 2018, has been a director since 2002. Hilton also joined the board in 2002."I want to offer my sincere appreciation to our employees,

A former banker has been hired to lead the Hawaii Credit Union League. The association said in a press release that its board had appointed Carol Marx as its new president and CEO, succeeding Dennis Tanimoto. Marx previously served as a retail sales manager for the mortgage banking division at Bank of Hawaii in Honolulu. She has also worked at Bank of America, First Hawaiian Bank and Pioneer Federal Savings Bank. “The credit

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. has joined a growing list of federal agencies weighing in on financial institutions’ cryptocurrency activities. The FDIC on Thursday issued a letter to supervised banks making it clear that they should inform the agency if they are dealing in crypto or plan to do so. FDIC-supervised institutions should notify a regional director. The notice should describe the activity in detail and include a proposed timeline for engaging

Bolt, a payments provider based in San Francisco, has agreed to buy Wyre, a cryptocurrency infrastructure provider. Bolt said in a press release Thursday that it expects the acquisition of the San Francisco company to close later this year. The companies plan to collaborate on projects designed to provide mainstream, secure crypto usage for shoppers, retailers and developers. The goal is to connect Bolt’s one-click checkout and fraud prevention product to the

Bank of Marin Bancorp in Novato, Calif., will soon have a new chairman. The $4.3 billion-asset company said in a press release Thursday that Willie McDevitt will become the chairman on May 10. He has been a director since 2007 and vice chairman since 2015. McDevitt is a consultant to McDevitt Construction Partners, a company he founded in 1976. He is also president of Sausalito Hotel Corp., which owns and operates The

Unifimoney, a fintech that is building a wealth management platform for small banks and credit unions, has raised $10 million from investors that include the Independent Community Bankers of America. The San Francisco startup has a platform that includes trading in over 70 cryptocurrencies, along with passive and active investing in stocks, ETFs and precious metals.  The new capital will help Unifimoney extend its coverage of alternative assets to include collectables,