Woodland Bank in Minn. names new president
Woodland Bank in Deer River, Minn., has a new president. The $138 million-asset bank named Kurt Werner to the post, according to BusinessNorth.com. Werner, who was an executive vice president at the bank, took over day-to-day operations and will oversee the lending department. “We have built a high-performing team that requires we recruit, retain and recognize […]
Huntington forming streamlined consumer segment
Huntington Bancshares in Columbus, Ohio, plans to streamline its consumer operations into a single segment. The $183 billion-asset company will combine its retail and business banking operations and its auto finance business into its wealth management, private banking and insurance segment. The move, expected to take place in April and will create a single consumer […]
Ohio Valley to shutter online consumer mortgage unit
Ohio Valley Banc Corp. in Gallipolis plans to close its online consumer mortgage company. The $1.2 billion-asset company disclosed in a regulatory filing that it will shutter Race Day Mortgage. The decision reflects “low loan demand, issues retaining personnel and lack of profitability.” Ohio Valley said it plans to see current in-progress loan applications to […]
BHB Fund completes initial fundraising round
The Bankers Helping Bankers Fund, a fintech-focused venture capital fund, has completed its first fundraising round. The BHB Fund, managed by Latitude38 Venture Partners, disclosed that investors included Woodforest Bank, Origin Bank, Texas First Bank, Dream First Bank, National Bank and Trust, Legend Bank, Fannin Bank and First State Bank of Louise. IBAT Services and […]
Fifth Third’s bank to absorb fintech Provide
Fifth Third Bancorp in Cincinnati is planning to merge Provide, a heath care focused fintech, into its bank. The $207 billion-asset company disclosed in a legal notice that it applied with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to merge the digital platform into its Fifth Third Bank. Fifth Third bought Provide in August 2021. The bank […]
Organizers plan women-owned bank in central Ohio
A group in Grandview Heights, Ohio, is planning a women-owned bank. Organizers have applied with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to form Fortuna Bank. Ilaria Rawlins, a former executive at First Financial Bancorp in Cincinnati, would become the bank’s president and CEO. Lisa Berger is expected to serve as the bank’s chairman. While there are […]
Clarion County in Pa. forms division for market expansion
Clarion County Community Bank in Clarion, Pa., is planning a new division to focus on expansion in Erie, Pa. The $211 million-asset bank is planning Flagship Community Bank to coincide with opening its first branch in the market, according to GoErie.com. The bank, formed in 2004, has been making commercial loans in the area for […]
Nebraska credit union dealing with fraud issue
Creighton Federal Credit Union in Omaha, Neb., is slowly getting back to normal following a series of fraudulent online debit card purchases. The $66.8 million-asset credit union is now allowing members to make four online debit card purchases per day. Earlier in the week, Creighton had capped those transactions to once daily. “We have learned […]
FB Financial invests in manufactured home lender
FB Financial in Nashville, Tenn., has invested in a fintech that focuses on manufactured home loans. The $12.8 billion-asset company said in a press release that its FirstBank unit invested in Zippy. The amount of the investment and the size of the stake were not disclosed. Zippy operates in nine states – Texas, Arizona, Kansas, […]
Former bank president in N.D. sentenced for fraud
A former president of First Security Bank-West in Beulah, N.D., has been sentenced to two years in federal prison after pleading guilty to two counts of bank fraud. The Justice Department said in a press release that Brady Daniel Torgerson was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release and pay a $200 special […]
Customers in Pa. forms loan syndications team
Customers Bancorp in Malvern, Pa., has formed a new loan syndications banking team, marking an expansion in middle-market lending. The $20 billion-asset company said in a press release that it hired Kyle Silberman as a managing director and head of loan syndications. He previously served as head of syndications at Amerant Bank. The team will […]
Signature Bank in New York sets up CEO succession
Joe DePaolo, founding CEO of Signature Bank, plans to gradually step back from the New York bank. The $110 billion-asset bank said in a press release that DePaolo, its president and CEO, will transition to a senior adviser role this year. Eric Howell, Signature’s chief operating officer, will become president on March 1. Howell will […]
Truist selling 20% stake in insurance unit for nearly $2B
Truist Financial in Charlotte, N.C., has agreed to sell a 20% stake in its insurance unit for nearly $2 billion in cash. The $555 billion-asset company said in a press release that it plans to sell the stake to funds managed by Stone Point Capital. Mubadala Investment and other entities are also participating in the transaction. […]
Lake Shore in ‘troubled condition,’ suspends dividend
Lake Shore Bancorp in Dunkirk, N.Y. has suspended its quarterly dividend after its bank was classified as being in a “troubled condition” by the Office of Comptroller of the Currency. The $700 million-asset company disclosed in a regulatory filing that it will focus its capital resources on fixing “operational, compliance and governance deficiencies described in […]
TD Bank pledges $50B in five-year community plan
TD Bank in Toronto has pledged $50 billion to underserved communities as part of a community benefits plan tied to its pending purchase of First Horizon in Memphis, Tenn. TD Bank said in a press release that it worked with the National Community Reinvestment Coalition to create the five-year plan. “Banks have an important […]
Latino-focused neobank Comun raises $4.5 million
Comun, a challenger bank that will focus on the Latino community, has raised $4.5 million in seed funding. The neobank said in a press release that the funding round was led by Costanoa Ventures, with participation from South Park Commons and FJ Labs. Comun said it plans to use the funds to build a financial […]
Hiring challenges led Salisbury in Conn. to mull selling
Hiring challenges spurred Salisbury Bancorp in Lakeville, Conn., to start looking for a buyer last fall. The $1.5 billion-asset company agreed to sell itself to NBT Bancorp in Norwich, N.Y., in December for $204 million. Salisbury’s board also factored in limited growth opportunities, economic uncertainty and the state of consolidation when it decided to gauge […]
Brainard leaving Fed for National Economic Council
Lael Brainard will resign from the Federal Reserve after being appointed the new director of President Biden’s National Economic Council. Brainard, who joined the Fed in 2014 and has served as vice chair since May 2022, made the announcement in a late-day press release on Tuesday. “Lael has brought formidable talent and superb results to […]
Citizens Alliance to buy Granite Mountain in Montana
Citizens Alliance Bank in Clara City, Minn., has agreed to buy Granite Mountain Bank in Butte, Mont. The $1.2 billion-based unit of Forstrom Bancorp. filed its application with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. on Monday to buy the $135 million-asset Granite Mountain. The deal is expected to close later this year. Neil Bolton, Granite Mountain’s […]
Trico in Calif. discloses cybersecurity incident
Trico Bancshares in Chico, Calif., is dealing with a cybersecurity incident. The $9.9 billion-asset company disclosed in a regulatory filing that it recently shut down its networked systems after detecting unusual activity. Several of Trico’s internal bank systems are offline, including email, telephones and its customer service/call center. The company said it is working to […]
United Community in S.C. set to buy First Miami
United Community Banks in Greenville, S.C., has agreed to buy First Miami Bancorp in South Miami, Fla. The $24 billion-asset United said in a press release that it will pay about $115.9 million in stock for the $1 billion-asset First Miami. The deal, which is expected to close in the third quarter, priced First […]
Northpointe in Mich. to exit correspondent lending
Northpointe Bank in Grand Rapids, Mich., is exiting the correspondent lending business. The $4.4 billion-asset bank plans to focus more on retail lending, mortgage warehouse financing and specialty loan servicing, according to HousingWire. Fundings will stop on April 28. “Due to the significant contraction of the overall mortgage industry, we have made the difficult decision […]
TD, First Horizon push back merger deadline date
TD Bank Group in Toronto and First Horizon in Memphis, Tenn., have extended the deadline date for their planned merger. The companies said in a press release that the date had been moved from Feb. 27 to May 27 as they finalize a community benefits plans and wait for regulatory approval. TD had already acknowledged […]
First NBC founder found guilty of bank fraud
Ashton Ryan, former CEO of First NBC Bank, has been found guilty of bank fraud charges that contributed to the New Orleans bank’s failure in 2017. A court found Ryan guilty of all 46 counts against him, according to multiple media reports. Ryan had been accused of approving loans for borrowers that he knew couldn’t […]
Northwest in Ohio forms commercial finance group
Northwest Bank in Columbus, Ohio, has formed a commercial finance group. The $14 billion-asset bank said in a press release that the group will focus on business aviation, long-haul trucking, inland and offshore marine financing and general equipment loans to large and midsize companies. The group will operate across the eastern United States. Lee Palm […]