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Zelle counters scam talk with growth rates

The instant payments brand is highlighting a double-digit growth rate for its peer-to-peer payments tool and downplaying scams on its system.

Citi wins appeal on $500M Revlon loan blunder

“Put simply, you don’t get to keep money sent to you by mistake unless you’re entitled to it anyway,” one judge wrote in his opinion.

BofA pledges $25M to support Black and Latino-led CDFIs

“This collaboration demonstrates that opportunities and impact are literally doubled when we work together,” said Marla Bilonick, chair of the National Alliance of Latino CDFI Executives.

BlackRock blasts Republican AGs’ ‘misconceptions’ on its ESG role

The asset manager doesn’t “dictate to companies what specific emission targets they should meet,” BlackRock’s head of external affairs wrote in a letter. Rather, it asks companies to disclose climate-related data.

OCC zeroes in on bank-fintech partnership risk

The growth of fintechs and banking-as-a-service mirrors a rise in shadow banking that sparked the 2008 financial crisis, Acting Comptroller Michael Hsu said at a banking conference Wednesday.

10 takeaways from Michael Barr’s first speech as Fed’s supervision czar

The regulator pushed a tiered set of capital requirements and stricter living wills for regional banks. He also clarified the central bank’s stance on climate risk.

Truist taps insider as CFO as Bible retires

Mike Maguire, the Charlotte, North Carolina-based lender’s chief consumer finance and payments officer, will become CFO, effective Sept. 15. Current CFO Daryl Bible will stay on through a transition period.

Bank of America to issue revamped office-return policy in 6-8 weeks

The standards aim to add “formality” to the bank's flexibility, CEO Brian Moynihan said Tuesday at a conference.

Black woman, 71, sues Fifth Third over alleged refusal to cash check

The retiree alleges three White bank employees “insisted” the five-figure casino jackpot check was fraudulent. She later deposited it at JPMorgan Chase.

UBS, Wealthfront abandon $1.4B merger agreement

UBS did not give a reason for the deal’s disintegration, but the Swiss bank gave Wealthfront $69.7 million in financing, and the companies are “continuing to explore ways to work together in a partnership.”

Citi joins Wells Fargo in cutting mortgage-lending staff

Citi's layoffs will number fewer than 100, while Wells, in the past two weeks, notified 75 Iowa-based workers they would be let go.

Who’s afraid of FedNow? Not Visa

“The fact that there is a pipe, right, doesn't mean there's going to be traffic or volume on that pipe,” said the card network’s CFO, Vasant Prabhu. “If the pipe doesn't serve [specific] needs, the pipe will not be used.”

OCC orders Blue Ridge Bank to bolster fintech partnership oversight

The bank must obtain the regulator’s non-objection before signing on with any new fintech partners or adding new products through existing partners.

Even the anti-Goldman wants more employees in the office

Longtime remote-work advocate Jefferies asked for "everyone back in our offices on a consistent basis" as long as COVID stays "manageable" — but still took a swipe at Goldman in a memo Thursday.

OCC to cut smallest banks’ assessment fees by 40%

The move, effective in March 2023 and applying to a bank’s first $200 million in assets, marks the regulator’s fourth fee cut in as many years.

Fed ends 2012 AML enforcement action against HSBC

The London-based bank had been under the order since December 2012 after the Justice Department identified “stunning failures of oversight.”

Need to fill a C-suite void? Target banks that are being acquired

First Republic and other banks looking to fill high-ranking roles hired executives from MUFG Union Bank, People's United and other institutions at the non-surviving end of a merger.

Branch-closure freefall slows down: S&P Global

Net branch closures fell to 312 in the second quarter, compared with 950 in the first three months of 2022. If second-half closures continue at the first half’s pace, 19% fewer locations will shut down this year than in 2021.

Average overdraft fee falls nearly $4, to lowest level since 2009

ATM fees, however, jumped to a three-year high of $4.66 per transaction, according to a Bankrate study, which also found users needed record or near-record-high balances to avoid monthly service charges.

Hawaii’s Central Pacific Bank embraces BaaS to gather mainland deposits

“We could be business as usual, and continue focusing on traditional community banking in Hawaii,” the bank’s CFO said. “We chose to participate in the disruption."

Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley drop vaccine requirements

In a memo seen as a Labor Day office-return rally cry, Goldman cited new CDC guidance and the reduced risk of severe illness from COVID-19 as reasoning for the change, which doesn’t apply to New York City-based employees.

BofA, BMO push to close racial property ownership gap

Bank of America launched a program offering a zero-down payment, zero-closing-cost mortgage solution to first-time homebuyers in nonwhite-majority areas, and another aimed at small businesses.

JPMorgan Chase’s Frankfurt offices raided in tax-fraud probe

The cum-ex scandal exploited a loophole in German law that allowed multiple parties to claim refunds on a dividend tax that was paid once. Bank of America, Morgan Stanley and Barclays offices have also been searched.

Trade groups clap back at Warren’s call to rescind crypto guidance

The crypto winter is "wholly unrelated" to banks’ involvement in OCC-approved activities, the Bank Policy Institute and the American Bankers Association wrote. But further clarity is crucial.

Advocates seize on TD-First Horizon deal in rejection plea

Twelve groups led by the Center for Responsible Lending wrote OCC and Fed officials, urging them to quash the merger on overdraft and market concerns.