Plaid hires ex-FDIC chief Jelena McWilliams

The fintech’s CEO praised the incoming president of corporate and external affairs as a “consistent voice for transparency, consumer protection, and innovation” in a blog post Thursday.

By Dan Ennis • Jan. 9, 2026

Fed’s Bowman, lawmakers suggest regulatory threshold changes

The vice chair for supervision also wondered whether a more nuanced approach would be better than single-metric thresholds, such as those based on asset size.

By Caitlin Mullen • Jan. 8, 2026

Explore the Trendline➔

Top 5 stories from Banking Dive

Since President Donald Trump retook office, bank mergers and acquisitions have jumped considerably. But two of 2025’s biggest acquirers – PNC and Huntington– are choosing markedly diverging paths.

By Banking Dive staff

Brazil’s PicPay files for US IPO

The São Paulo-based fintech previously sought a U.S. listing in 2021 but withdrew a year later. Fellow Brazilian challenger Nubank applied for a U.S. banking license in September.

By Dan Ennis • Jan. 7, 2026

Bunq re-applies for OCC license

The Dutch neobank sought a U.S. license in 2023 but withdrew after a 301-day wait. It obtained a broker-dealer license in October from FINRA.

By Dan Ennis • Jan. 7, 2026

Baltimore sues fintech Dave over cash advance product

“Misleading” marketing and high interest charges were “intentionally designed to trap individuals in cycles of debt,” the city asserted. Baltimore sued another fintech, MoneyLion, in October.

By Daniel Muñoz • Jan. 7, 2026

BofA sued over alleged Jan. 6 ‘surveillance’

Bank of America “data-mined” its customer base to identify anyone who used a BofA product in the Washington, D.C., metro area between Jan. 5 and Jan 7, 2021, a customer alleged.

By Gabrielle Saulsbery • Jan. 7, 2026

JPMorgan eschews proxy advisers for internal AI tool

After CEO Jamie Dimon railed against the advisers for years, the bank’s asset management unit cut firms like ISS and Glass Lewis out of U.S. voting decisions.

By Lamar Johnson • Jan. 7, 2026

4 banking trends to watch in 2026

This year is poised to show how far the groundwork laid in 2025 can carry the banking space – with regard to regulation, mergers and acquisitions, artificial intelligence and more.

By Caitlin Mullen , Gabrielle Saulsbery , Dan Ennis • Jan. 7, 2026

BNY, BofA face fresh Epstein-related complaints

An alleged victim of late billionaire sex criminal Jeffrey Epstein has amended lawsuits against Bank of America and BNY, after a judge expressed skepticism about them last month.

By Gabrielle Saulsbery • Jan. 6, 2026

HSBC taps BNP Paribas exec to lead sustainable finance, transition in Asia

The London-based bank said Chaoni Huang would help its clients in the region “decarbonize and invest in new growth.”

By Zoya Mirza • Jan. 5, 2026

CFPB must request funds from Fed, court rules

A federal judge rejected an argument that the bureau would run out of money in early 2026 because the central bank hadn’t turned a profit since 2022.

By Dan Ennis • Jan. 5, 2026

Democratic AGs sue Trump administration over CFPB funding

New York Attorney General Letitia James and others want a federal court in Oregon to force the CFPB to take funds from the Federal Reserve to continue its watchdog duties.

By Gabrielle Saulsbery • Dec. 23, 2025

Huntington’s $7.4B Cadence deal gets regulatory sign-off

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency approved the acquisition 56 days after it was proposed – leaving just one multibillion-dollar banking deal from 2025 awaiting regulators’ blessing.

By Dan Ennis • Dec. 23, 2025

CFPB shifts on EWA policy, again

Certain employer-partnered earned wage access products aren’t subject to U.S. lending laws, the bureau said, formally discarding a 2024 Biden-era rule.

By Justin Bachman • Dec. 23, 2025

Fed seeks comments on ‘skinny’ account

The Federal Reserve Board voted 6-1 on Friday to gather public comment on creating a new special payments account for use by financial institutions.

By Lynne Marek • Dec. 22, 2025

Fintech Mercury applies for OCC bank charter

The company also appointed an alum of SoFi, Green Dot and Goldman Sachs to serve as CEO of the proposed bank. The move comes after the OCC approved five crypto firms for a different type of charter.

By Dan Ennis • Dec. 19, 2025

Senate confirms FDIC’s Hill, CFTC’s Selig

The party-line vote puts permanent leaders atop the two financial regulatory agencies.

By Caitlin Mullen • Dec. 19, 2025

OCC withdraws amendment to Citi consent order

The regulator is no longer requiring the bank to submit a breakdown of the resources it’s employing to resolve a 2020 order likely brought on by a $900 million errant transfer of funds.

By Gabrielle Saulsbery • Dec. 19, 2025

Tech-focused Erebor gets FDIC nod for deposit insurance

The proposed bank, backed by billionaire investor Peter Thiel, received conditional approval from the OCC in October.

By Dan Ennis • Dec. 17, 2025

FDIC details workforce cuts, stablecoin issuance process

Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould, an FDIC board member, supported the agency’s proposed budget but expects further room to trim it. He also hinted at budget cuts to come at the OCC.

By Caitlin Mullen • Dec. 17, 2025

Fed terminates Goldman, Metropolitan consent orders

The cease-and-desists date back to 2020 and 2023, tied to the 1MDB scandal and prepaid cards, respectively.

By Gabrielle Saulsbery • Dec. 17, 2025

PayPal seeks bank charter

The payments pioneer has applied with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and the Utah Department of Financial Institutions to form an industrial bank.

By Lynne Marek • Dec. 16, 2025

BaFin hits N26 with additional oversight

The German neobank has run into compliance issues before, in 2021. On Monday, BaFin appointed a special monitor to keep tabs on the neobank's compliance arm.

By Gabrielle Saulsbery • Dec. 15, 2025

JPMorgan conducted ‘fake’ interviews of Black candidates, lawsuit alleges

The bank’s treatment of the plaintiff is part of a decades-long “unbroken pattern of systemic race discrimination against African Americans,” per the lawsuit.

By Ginger Christ • Dec. 15, 2025

OCC green-lights Circle, Ripple, Paxos for national trust bank charters

Five firms in all received conditional approval from the regulator, though Coinbase and Stripe’s Bridge were not among them.

By Dan Ennis • Dec. 12, 2025