Borrowers can get better rates elsewhere, so they're repaying ahead of schedule, leaving banks in the lurch. The steps lenders would have to take to keep the business could be prohibitively expensive.
The $17 billion-asset Bank of Hawaii reported higher profits on rising interest income, even as it saw yearly declines in mortgage banking and deposit fee income, as well as losses on investment securities.
The divide highlights a lingering question about how much commercial and retail depositors value cutting-edge technology over price — and whether midsize banks can keep pace with bigger rivals when it comes to tech investments.
