BankThink

Wall Street Journal

Megabanks are "lying low" while Congress tries to wrap up its budget for the year. But that doesn't mean some other financial-services institutions aren't trying to push through their own agendas. Regional banks want to ease their regulatory burden, specifically by raising the $50 billion threshold that triggers stricter oversight under Dodd-Frank. The change is seen as helping institutions like Capital One Financial and M&T Bank. Democrats on the House Financial Services Committee...

Industry advocates say Consumer Financial Protection Bureau curbs on arbitration will eliminate a favored legal option, but where's the evidence that banks really prefer arbitration?

PwC's Dennis Nally on how men can empower women in financial services; Fidelity's Kathy Murphy on drawing female customers to financial planning; Well Fargo's Maureen O'Donnell on welcoming female advisers aboard; and are the regulatory agencies welcoming to women?

The competitive environment has raised the importance and profile of marketing, but many banks are still trying to market themselves on a shoestring budget.

Receiving Wide Coverage ...

Apple Eyes P-2-P Payments: In a bid to claim a bigger stake in the payments industry, Apple has begun talks with banks to launch a peer-to-peer payment service. The service would target the market already enjoyed by PayPal's Venmo and Square's Square Cash, the Wall Street Journal reports. Venmo currently accounts for 19% of mobile person-to-person payments, facilitating $2.1 billion in mobile payments during the third quarter alone. As part of this...