Commercial banking

The holding company for Union Bank — itself a unit of the Japanese giant Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group — is on a mission to double its size and become one of the nation's 10 largest banks. Under Steve Cummings, its first-ever American CEO, MUFG Americas has expanded middle-market lending and amassed $3 billion of consumer deposits through its new online bank. Is a splashy acquisition next?

CEO Michael Corbat all but called out his counterparts at other banks to join Citigroup in setting limits on what kinds of firearms businesses it is willing to serve. The response was muted, but the pressure to act is tremendous.

CEO Tim Sloan was paid $17.4 million, though he was denied a cash bonus, as the San Francisco bank continued to contend with scandal fallout.

The online giant has succeeded in disrupting every area of retail, but in banking it faces a high barrier to entry and fierce determination from banks like Citizens Financial and Bank of the West to keep upping their games.

Since stepping down as CEO of Webster Bank last month, James Smith has spent much of his time co-chairing a panel tasked with solving his home state’s fiscal and economic woes. Banks, and perhaps even fintechs, could be a part of its comeback story, he says.