Wells Fargo clears penultimate consent order; asset cap remains

The 2015 order brought by the OCC was the 13th closed since 2019 and the seventh this year. CEO Charlie Scharf indicated Wednesday the bank is inching closer to freedom from the $1.95 trillion asset cap. 

By Rajashree Chakravarty • May 30, 2025

Ex-Goldman exec gets 2-year sentence over 1MDB scandal

Prosecutors sought leniency for Tim Leissner based on his cooperation, which the bank pushed back on, saying the former executive’s efforts are “deserving of sanction, not praise.”

By Caitlin Mullen • May 30, 2025

Explore the Trendline➔

M&A

President Donald Trump’s reelection was predicted to yield loosened regulation. But tariff volatility and economic uncertainty has thrown a wrench into an expected boom in mergers and acquisitions.

By Banking Dive staff

Seacoast bets big on The Villages in $710.8M deal

The acquisitive bank will buy VBI, which touts a more than 50% deposit share in Florida’s largest retirement community, in a transaction set to close in the fourth quarter.

By Dan Ennis • May 30, 2025

Bank profits rise in Q1

The FDIC’s 4,462 insured banks saw a 1.16% return on assets and net income of $70.6 billion in the first quarter.

By Gabrielle Saulsbery • May 29, 2025

UBS to sell hedge fund business to Cantor Fitzgerald

The Swiss lender’s O’Connor unit, with $11 billion in assets under management, will return to the purview of Bill Ferri, a UBS veteran and O’Connor founder who’s now at Cantor Fitzgerald.

By Caitlin Mullen • May 29, 2025

Citi sells Polish consumer business to VeloBank

Upon closing, it will be the 10th international consumer business Citi has sold since 2021. The bank will maintain its institutional business in Poland, as it has elsewhere, following the sale.

By Gabrielle Saulsbery • May 28, 2025

Wells Fargo’s Scharf assured over asset cap’s potential end

“We’re not done, but we’re a hell of a lot closer to the end than the beginning, at this point,” the CEO said Wednesday.

By Caitlin Mullen • May 28, 2025

BancFirst to buy Oklahoma lender hit with DOJ redlining order

BancFirst seeks to buy American Bank of Oklahoma, which agreed to pay $1.15 million in August 2023 to settle a Justice Department investigation for failing to monitor and address fair lending risks.

By Rajashree Chakravarty • May 27, 2025

JPMorgan Chase launches geopolitics center

CEO Jamie Dimon has long beat the drum on geopolitical awareness. Now, his bank wants to help clients make sense of it all.

By Gabrielle Saulsbery • May 22, 2025

PNC to buy Aqueduct to boost private equity capital-raise potential

The deal is expected to close in midsummer, the companies said. Financial terms were not disclosed.

By Dan Ennis • May 22, 2025

TD to cut 2% of workforce, wind down $3B portfolio

The bank expects to record up to $505 million in restructuring charges over the next several quarters, said CFO Kelvin Tran. The portfolio, meanwhile, is tied to its U.S. point-of-sale financing business.

By Caitlin Mullen • May 22, 2025

JPMorgan aims to ‘resist’ headcount growth

Although headcount increases in recent years were necessary to support growth, “we do suspect some inefficiency was introduced,” the bank’s CFO said during Monday’s investor day.

By Caitlin Mullen • May 19, 2025

Fed drops enforcement action against Illinois bank

The central bank flagged deficiencies at Du Quoin State Bank in 2023 and directed the lender to improve capital, liquidity and interest rate risk management.

By Rajashree Chakravarty • May 15, 2025

Wells Fargo eyes opportunity with baby-boomer wealth transfer

The bank, which has bolstered the connection between its commercial bank and wealth units, seeks to cultivate deeper relationships as aging business owners assess the future.

By Caitlin Mullen • May 15, 2025

BNP Paribas shareholders approve higher age limit for CEO

The French bank’s investors Tuesday backed moves to allow 63-year-old Jean-Laurent Bonnafé and 74-year-old Jean Lemierre to remain in the chief executive and board chair roles longer.

By Caitlin Mullen • May 13, 2025

Ex-Wells exec sues Fed for deferred compensation

James Richards’ restricted share rights were denied in March, arguably over Wells Fargo’s “troubled condition” and whether the annual awards were “golden handcuffs” or a “golden parachute.” 

By Rajashree Chakravarty • May 12, 2025

Capital One asks judge to toss Trump de-banking lawsuit

The Trump Organization’s “generalized allegations” of politically motivated de-banking don’t hold up and its claims lack “factual or legal support,” the bank said Wednesday.

By Caitlin Mullen • May 9, 2025

Wall Street bonuses to drop amid market volatility, consultant finds

Bonuses in equity underwriting are predicted to plunge up to 20% as firms in the initial public offering market take a “wait and see” approach, Johnson Associates said. 

By Rajashree Chakravarty • May 8, 2025

Credit Suisse pleads guilty to tax crimes, agrees to pay $511M

The lender now owned by UBS pleaded guilty to conspiring to hide more than $4 billion from the IRS in at least 475 offshore accounts.

By Rajashree Chakravarty • May 6, 2025

Treasury’s Bessent: Private credit surge underscores need for bank deregulation

“The growth of private credit tells me that the regulated banking system has been too tightly constrained,” Scott Bessent said Monday.

By Caitlin Mullen • May 6, 2025

First National Bank of Omaha to buy Kansas City bank

FNBO is the 16th-largest bank by market share in Kansas City. The deal, expected to close this year, will boost its position to ninth.

By Gabrielle Saulsbery • May 5, 2025

Associated Bank sees new hires driving commercial growth

The Midwest regional has snagged a handful of new bankers from U.S. Bank in recent months, as part of the push to expand its commercial bank. 

By Caitlin Mullen • May 5, 2025

BNY ups in-office requirement to 4 days per week

The bank is implementing the policy Sept. 2. It has allowed employees to work remotely two days a week since the first half of 2023.

By Caitlin Mullen • May 1, 2025

HSBC chair to retire by year’s end

Mark Tucker, who joined the bank in 2017, will step down from his role in the next seven months after a successor is selected.

By Gabrielle Saulsbery • May 1, 2025

The ‘joiner’ era of bank M&A has begun

Shortly after the Capital One-Discover deal received sign-off, Columbia, Eastern and Cadence Bank all announced deals. So did a host of smaller institutions.

By Dan Ennis • April 30, 2025