BankThink

Use Tiered Regulation to Preserve Small Banks, Keep Big Ones in Line

04/02/15

A two-tiered system of regulation could encourage small banks to maintain their relationship-based business model and prevent big banks from using insured deposits to conduct risky activities.

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Morning Scan: Silicon Valley Bank's Enviable Spot; Currency Volatility to Help Earnings

04/02/15

Wall Street Journal

Volatility in currency markets should give a boost to banks' first-quarter earnings. Currency market volatility rose 18% from Jan. 1 to mid-March, according to Deutsche Bank. However, not every bank will glean a benefit from the currency volatility. Citigroup is expected to report a decline in trading revenue because of its exposure to the Swiss franc. The irony is that JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup and others remain at the center of government probes into...

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Millennial Customers Aren't All They're Cracked Up to Be

04/01/15

Millennials may be a critical market segment for some banks, but the people now in their 20s and 30s also tend to be low-balance, transitory accountholders. It may make more sense for banks to focus their marketing dollars on the ex-slackers known as Gen X instead.

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In-Store Branch DNA: Well Worth Replication

04/01/15

In-store bankers are experts in finding creative ways to catch potential customers' attention. That's a skill that every modern bank employee needs to hone.

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Morning Scan: New Credit Score for the Underbanked; Ex-Chargers Linebacker Sues B of A

04/01/15

Wall Street Journal

Fair Isaac is developing a new credit score that's aimed at the millions of people who currently don't have credit scores and are cut off from auto loans, credit cards and mortgages. About 53 million Americans are now unable to qualify for most types of bank-issued consumer credit because they don't have a credit history. The product "is largely a response to banksÂ' desire to boost lending volumes by increasing loan originations to...

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Don't Blame Dodd-Frank for Dwindling Number of Community Banks

03/31/15

The sweeping reforms passed in 2010 didn't bring community banks to the brink of extinction. Rather, their numbers have dwindled because of the impact of economies of scale and dormant de novo banking activity.

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Patriot Financial, Castle Creek Selling Big Stakes in Denver's Guaranty

03/31/15

Patriot Financial Partners and Castle Creek Capital Partners will significantly reduce their holdings in Guaranty Bancorp in Denver.

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Who Wins the Derisking Shell Game? Bad Guys, Mostly

03/31/15

A growing lack of transparency between some businesses and their banking service providers threatens our ability to effectively manage money laundering and terrorist financing risk.

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Morning Scan: Federal Agents Nabbed in Silk Road Heist; JPMorgan Execs Deposed

03/31/15

Receiving Wide Coverage ...

When Nob Met Dread: Two federal officials assigned to investigate Silk Road, the digital marketplace for drugs that only accepted payment via Bitcoin, have been charged with illegally using the defunct black-market service to enrich themselves. An agent with the Drug Enforcement Administration and a Secret Service agent have resigned and been charged with money laundering and wire fraud. The DEA agent, named Carl Mark Force IV, has also been charged with...

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Stop the FDIC's Crusade Against Brokered Deposits

03/30/15

Not only do the FDIC's limitations on brokered deposits curtail bank earnings, they deny banks the ability to use brokered deposits to meet community lending needs.

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