Piedmont Federal Savings Bank in Winston-Salem, N.C., is seeking flexibility by forming a mutual holding company. The $1 billion-asset bank recently applied with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. related to the move. Creating an MHC would give Piedmont Federal more options for growth in the future such as getting into title insurance or participating in an insurance consortium, CEO David Barksdale said in

Three members of the Fannie Mae board, including former Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Sheila Bair, are resigning. Bair, Antony Jenkins and Hugh Frater will step down from the GSE’s board on May 1, Fannie Mae said in a press release. Frater will also retire as Fannie Mae’s CEO, a position he has held since 2019. Bair, who joined the board in 2019 and became its chairman a year later, will be

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