The bank's five-year commitment will focus on providing more capital to small businesses and expanding access to affordable housing and home ownership.
The Ohio company, which has beefed up its loan-loss reserves, raised the possibility of more sales of oil and gas credits and talked up strong retail segments such as its marine and RV loans.
The combination of low unemployment, rising wages and falling interest rates means more households are taking out loans for big-ticket items like speedboats and mobile homes.
The Ohio bank's total deposits grew, unlike at some other regionals, and CEO Stephen Steinour said its 28-basis-point increase in overall funding costs will pay off.
Huntington, Wintrust and Eagle reported extremely low quarterly chargeoff ratios, and their CEOs say they remain confident about the future. But, as one observer says, "ultimately some sector is going to get overextended."
Huntington Bancshares says it is especially well positioned to benefit from a commercial lending boom that could accompany a revival of U.S. heavy industry, but other lenders also say they are upbeat.
