Ohio’s First Financial to acquire Westfield Bancorp in $325M deal

The transaction, set to close in the fourth quarter, would expand the Cincinnati’s bank’s presence in the opposite corner of the Buckeye State.

Banking industry, big tech unite to forge AI adoption guidelines

Citi and Morgan Stanley joined forces with AWS, Microsoft and Google Cloud to set open-source controls for secure AI adoption in the financial industry.

Nissan applies for ILC charter from FDIC

The carmaker joins GM, Ford and Edward Jones in awaiting the OK to form industrial banks. The FDIC's acting chair said ILCs could boost creation of new banks. Opponents say the move sidesteps the Fed.

Fed, OCC ban 2 bankers apiece

The bankers are former employees of Ally, Santander, Bank of Hawaii and BOKF. The prohibitions come after the regulators say they found instances of embezzlement and misappropriation of funds.

Senate official blocks CFPB defunding in Trump’s megabill

Measures to defund the CFPB, and to reduce salaries at the Fed, fall outside the limits of reconciliation, Senate parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough ruled Thursday.

Trump upholds OCC’s expedited bank merger reviews

The president signed a measure nullifying a 2024 OCC rule that Republican lawmakers aimed to curb through the Congressional Review Act, citing “burdensome standards.”

Warren, Waters probe NCUA chair on Trump firings

A letter sent Friday follows up on “troubling information” received from the NCUA IG after the April firings of two board members.

OCC orders ‘troubled’ Carver Bank to switch up strategy

The Black-owned bank must submit, by Sept. 30, a three-year plan including strategic goals, key financial indicators, risk tolerances and realistic strategies to improve its overall condition.

Black-owned Redemption acquires Utah bank

Holding company CEO Ashley Bell said he envisions Redemption establishing locations outside Utah that would be similar to Capital One cafes. “We will lean into expansion,” Bell said.

BMO to buy wealth manager Burgundy in $456M deal

Burgundy said BMO emerged as the “best path forward” amid a tougher-than-expected transition to its next generation of leadership.

JPMorgan Chase to launch deposit token

“It will be the first token of its kind on a public blockchain, enabling fast, secure, 24/7 money movement between trusted parties,” according to a post by Base, Coinbase’s blockchain.

GENIUS Act puts renewed spotlight on stablecoins, digital assets

The regulatory clarity the measure proposes to bring to the stablecoin space can help ease some of the worries of more conservative entities, such as banks, examining the space, EY’s Paul Brody said.

PNC’s mobile branch manager braces for hurricane season

“Our purpose is to make sure that we minimize any disruptions for the communities we serve, as quickly and as physically safely as we can do that,” Chris Hill said.

Synctera’s new risk chief doubles down on compliance planning

Fintech Synctera has tapped a former Fed and OCC examiner as CRCO, as the firm pursues growth with a focus on regulatory compliance. 

CFPB again delays small-biz data collection rule’s compliance timeline

The bureau in April said it is “assessing” the rule with an eye toward retooling it. The CFPB later said it wouldn’t enforce the measure. And Senate Republicans have sought to push compliance to 2034.

Primis to sell some of its stake in medical fintech

An undisclosed buyer will purchase Panacea Financial for $22 million. A timeline for the deal was not disclosed.

Banks reverse course, increase fossil fuel investments in 2024: report

The top four U.S. banks — JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citi and Wells Fargo — represented 21% of the global financing in the latest Banking on Climate Chaos report.

Citizens exec: ‘Crazy’ tariff volatility seems to have abated

Client optimism is returning after an initial dip, but “everybody is doing one more lap around the diligence on M&A deals,” said Don McCree, the lender’s head of commercial banking.

Fed, OCC, FDIC target check fraud

Federal agencies took aim at payments fraud Monday, proposing more collaboration, including with states, to combat the rising problem, especially with respect to paper checks.

JPMorgan names firm vet to lead international consumer bank

Mark O’Donovan will replace Sanoke Viswanathan, who earlier this month said he would leave the bank to run financial software firm FactSet.

Commerce to buy FineMark in $585M deal

The acquirer aims to expand its presence in high-growth markets and leverage its wealth platform with the addition of FineMark’s $7.7 billion in assets under administration in a deal set to close by Jan. 1, 2026. 

BNY names CEO Robin Vince as its next chair

With the move, Joe Echevarria will become the bank’s lead independent director. BNY will be the sixth of the eight U.S.-based global SIFIs to consolidate the CEO and board chair roles.

Open banking to survive Trump, fintechs say

Consumers and financial services firms will pursue their mutual interests in sharing personal data, despite a move by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to extinguish the trend, industry experts contend.

Arvest banker gets lifetime Fed ban

Christopher Timos stole more than $42,000 from customers over the course of two years, Arvest found.

KeyBank wants to boost commercial team hires by 10% this year

The Cleveland-based regional aims to have 170 to 180 commercial bankers by the end of 2025.