BankThink

Public bank isn't the answer for California’s pot industry: Report

12/28/18

A state-backed bank would not be financially feasible because capital requirements would be too high and it likely wouldn’t return profits to the state for at least 30 years, consultants concluded.

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Can core providers and small banks settle grievances in 2019?

12/28/18

Both sides acknowledge where expectations haven't been met, and are feeling the same market pressures to adapt faster.

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Wells Fargo to pay state regulators $575M over phony accounts, other scandals

12/28/18

The cost of Wells Fargo's scandals continues to rise as regulators from all 50 states forced the institution to pay hundreds of millions in penalties for the creation of fake accounts, improper enrollment in life insurance, force-placed auto insurance policies and other activities.

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Hope Bancorp moves to shutter branches, hold SBA loans

12/28/18

The branch closures will reduce overhead by an estimated $1.9 million a year.

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Biggest competitive threat to banks is one of their own

12/28/18

JPMorgan Chase’s planned expansion into more than a dozen new markets threatens community banks and larger institutions alike.

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'What will the next idiocy be?': Comments of the year

12/28/18

Readers this year responded to Mick Mulvaney's leadership at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the banking industry's role in the national gun debate, Rep. Maxine Water's upcoming leadership of the Financial Services Committee, the influence of tech companies like Facebook and Amazon on financial services and much more.

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Will 2019 bring long-awaited GSE reform?

12/28/18

After 10 years of conservatorship, the new year could finally usher in big steps toward housing finance reform.

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Massachusetts lender sets lofty goal: Double in size in five years

12/28/18

HarborOne Bancorp — led by James Blake, one of our five community bankers to watch in 2019 — is a former credit union that recently made its first bank acquisition and has Boston and other markets in its sights.

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Why banks shouldn't make online banking too easy

12/27/18

Rushing to copy the Amazon experience, banks and fintechs are focused on simplifying financial services online. A Georgia Tech researcher says that approach is risky.

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Will Congress move to outlaw ‘live’ checks?

12/27/18

A bipartisan bill stirring in the Senate would prohibit lenders from mailing unsolicited checks that can immediately be converted into high-interest loans. Consumer groups call the loans predatory, but lenders say they are a lifeline for cash-strapped households.

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