Financial News

  The combination would create a Northeast regional bank with nearly $24 billion of assets. It would rank as the eighth-largest bank in the Boston metropolitan area by deposit market share. 

  The president-elect confirmed that he will pursue a strategic reserve of the flagship cryptocurrency as part of a broader push for the U.S. to champion the digital asset industry. 

  If the Trump administration is really planning to trim back regulations on banking and financial services firms, the industry needs to get out in front of the process by identifying necessary reforms. 

  Ripple, MoneyGram and FV Bank all bolstered their ability to distribute digital assets, with cross-border transactions emerging as a primary use case. 

  Known as a pragmatic moderate before arriving at the Fed, Vice Chair for Supervision Michael Barr is now synonymous with an aggressive and divisive approach to bank regulation. Can he still accomplish his goals under President Trump? 

  The Long Island bank is the latest financial institution to use new equity to restructure its balance sheet and unload low-yielding assets. Its stock price tumbled after the shares were priced at a considerable discount. 

  Affirm partners with Sixth Street to sell its buy now/pay later loans to the investment firm; Associated Banc-Corp promotes Steven Zandpour to deputy head of consumer and business banking; Visa Direct speeds up its money transfers; and more in this

  We should consolidate federal oversight of the banking industry within the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. It would rationalize a system that has grown increasingly unwieldy over generations. 

  Upbound currently focuses on lease-to-own products. Brigit will help it expand its offerings, but the fintech faced an FTC complaint last year. 

  Banks will feel the fallout from a court's decision to strike down a Nasdaq rule that would have mandated more disclosure about the racial and gender composition of corporate boards.