The Minneapolis-based banking giant is enjoying its biggest year ever for 7(a) lending, with volume up 40%, as borrowers "are still coming to us," its SBA chief said.

REV Federal Credit Union in suburban Charleston, South Carolina, plans to acquire First Neighborhood Bank in West Virginia. It marks the 15th deal this year involving a credit union buying a bank, closing in on 2022's record of 16 deals.

Lower interest rates could bolster loan demand, credit quality and securities portfolios. But they could also curb lending profitability faster than they ease deposit costs, crimping net interest margins and eating into near-term profits.

Increased demand from borrowers may hinge on Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and his colleagues cutting interest rates this fall.

A Northwest credit union announced plans this week to buy a community bank, lifting the 2024 total of such deals to 13 and putting the year on track to set a record. The all-time annual high of 16 was set in 2022.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency wants to update the dual mission of the Federal Home Loan Banks. Members of the private bank cooperative say their regulator has no authority to redefine the mission.

The agency admitted navigating the different rules and regulations involved in its four existing lines of credit proved time consuming and confusing and kept some lenders from offering them altogether.

The Kansas City, Missouri-based regional bank said it is making progress on its pending purchase of Heartland Financial USA in Denver. The deal is expected to close during the first quarter of 2025.

The Hammond, Louisiana, company, which announced changes to its business strategy, cut 71 jobs and reduced its dividend to 8 cents per share.

Investment banking fees shot up at the nation's largest bank, thanks to rebounds in M&A and the equity capital markets segment. And despite higher credit costs in the company's card business, a top bank executive expressed confidence in the health of U.S. consumers.

There were 27 bank acquisitions worth $5.45 billion announced in the second quarter as of mid-June. That was more than the $5.2 billion combined value of deals announced over the previous five quarters.

Atlanta Postal Credit Union's bid to acquire Affinity Bank marked the 11th deal overall this year involving a credit union buying a bank, matching the total for all of 2023. Separately, members voted against the merger of two credit unions in Indiana.

West Coast Community Bancorp agreed to acquire 1st Capital Bancorp in an all-stock deal slated to close in the fourth quarter.

The number of borrowers who are at their credit limits is approaching its pre-pandemic level, and the percentage of balances that are sliding into delinquency has hit its highest rate in more than a decade, according to new research. Still, card companies are generally expressing optimism about their credit outlooks.

Bank stocks are up this year as interest rates have leveled off and there are hopes that pressure on lenders' profits could moderate.

The Federal Reserve, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued a 30-page guidebook on managing affiliate risks. The report builds on formal guidance issued last year.

In talks with OCC officials, "it became obvious that we would not gain near-term approval given their recent experience with multifamily and CRE positions," FirstSun CEO Neal Arnold says. The companies announced other revisions to their deal, too.

Consolidation has slowed since the pandemic, but UMB's agreement to buy Heartland Financial — the largest deal in three years — is one of several merger announcements in the past two weeks. Talks among other potential buyers and sellers are said to be picking up.

The Philadelphia-based bank's parent company, Republic First Bancshares, had been roiled by a yearslong proxy battle involving activist investors groups and its former CEO.

Net charge-offs at the Charlotte, North Carolina-based bank increased by more than 80% in the first quarter compared with a year earlier. BofA executives say that the rising losses were in line with the bank's risk appetite.