BlackRock, Tennessee reach settlement on ESG suit

The agreement dismisses the state’s 2023 lawsuit and does not find that the investment firm violated any laws. “We’re pleased to resolve this matter,” a BlackRock spokesperson said.

By Lamar Johnson • Jan. 22, 2025

Dive Deposits: FDIC’s Hill wastes little time in re-prioritizing

The agency’s acting chief laid out his aim for transparency in fintech partnerships, a faster bank merger approval process and a 180-degree turn on “problematic” Biden-era proposals.

By Dan Ennis • Jan. 22, 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

Patriot Bank, OCC ink deal over ‘troubled’ condition

The Connecticut lender is taking remedial steps after the OCC found “unsafe or unsound practices” and violations related to strategic and capital planning and AML risk management. 

By Rajashree Chakravarty • Jan. 22, 2025

Wells Fargo, Merrill Lynch, LPL settle SEC charges

Two Wells Fargo-affiliated investment advisers and Merrill Lynch agreed to pay $60 million, while LPL Financial agreed to pay $18 million.

By Rajashree Chakravarty • Jan. 21, 2025

Fed, FDIC exit climate-focused organization NGFS

The central bank said the work of the Network of Central Banks and Supervisors for Greening the Financial System has “broadened in scope” and no longer falls within its “statutory mandate.”

By Zoya Mirza • Jan. 21, 2025

CFPB to consider broader ban on declined payment fees

The agency withdrew a rule proposal barring bank fees on certain declined transactions. Its plan for a “more comprehensive approach” faces an uncertain future in the Trump administration.

By Lynne Marek • Jan. 21, 2025

Chicago’s Pulaski Savings Bank is 2025’s first to fail in US

Illinois-based Millennium Bank acquired Pulaski’s deposits and most of its assets. The FDIC said the collapse will cost $28.5 million to the Deposit Insurance Fund, citing suspected fraud.

By Gabrielle Saulsbery • Jan. 21, 2025

Wells Fargo ex-exec appeals $1.5M fine, OCC enforcement order

Paul McLinko served as the bank’s executive audit director during its 2016 fake-accounts scandal. He called the penalty “arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, and otherwise not in accordance with law.”

By Gabrielle Saulsbery • Jan. 17, 2025

WaFd sheds 8% of staff with mortgage exit

“Our aim is to always offer products and services to our customers where WaFd Bank can add value, and we have concluded that we no longer do so in the mortgage sector,” CEO Brent Beardall said Thursday.

By Caitlin Mullen • Jan. 17, 2025

Amex pays $230M to resolve DOJ allegations

The credit card giant misrepresented features of some credit cards targeting small businesses and entered false information on card applications, the Justice Department alleged.

By Patrick Cooley • Jan. 16, 2025

Silvergate ex-CFO seeks dismissal of SEC charges

Antonio Martino filed for dismissal Tuesday, seven months after the SEC fined Silvergate and banned two of its executives from C-suite positions for five years.

By Gabrielle Saulsbery • Jan. 16, 2025

BaaS outlook brighter after period of growing pains

Regulatory scrutiny of the banking-as-a-service model won’t disappear, but the number of BaaS-related enforcement actions this year is expected to be more of a trickle than a flood.

By Caitlin Mullen • Jan. 15, 2025

Robinhood to pay $45M to settle SEC charges

Robinhood Securities will pay $33.5 million and Robinhood Financial will pay $11.5 million to settle a variety of charges, including recordkeeping and cybersecurity violations.

By Gabrielle Saulsbery • Jan. 15, 2025

FDIC’s Gruenberg cautions against ‘complacency,’ urges strong supervision

The outgoing FDIC chair, speaking Tuesday at the Brookings Institution, shared lessons learned from bank crises “as we head into a period of uncertainty about the future path of financial regulation.”

By Caitlin Mullen • Jan. 15, 2025

3 ex-Wells Fargo execs fined $18.5M over fake-accounts scandal

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency banned the bank’s former community bank group risk officer for life, among other penalties handed down Tuesday.

By Dan Ennis • Jan. 15, 2025

Barclays’ sustainability chief steps down as sector scrutiny heats up

Laura Barlow will leave her leadership role but continue at the bank as a senior adviser, a bank spokesperson said.

By Zoya Mirza • Jan. 14, 2025

CFPB sues Capital One over $2B in unpaid interest to customers

The agency accused Capital One of obscuring a new, higher-paying savings product from some legacy savings account holders. The bank said it is “disappointed” with the bureau’s “eleventh hour lawsuits.”

By Caitlin Mullen • Jan. 14, 2025

FDIC’s Hill sets out priorities for agency’s ‘new direction’

The agency’s vice chair anticipates a shift in bank supervision that emphasizes core financial risks over a process-related focus.

By Caitlin Mullen • Jan. 13, 2025

Texas AG drops probe of major US banks after exodus from climate alliance

State Attorney General Ken Paxton said Texas will end its ongoing review of Bank of America, Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan Chase following the banks’ exits from the Net-Zero Banking Alliance.

By Zoya Mirza • Jan. 10, 2025

Barr’s likely replacement advocates for ‘pragmatic’ approach

In a speech Thursday, Federal Reserve Gov. Michelle Bowman appeared to preview her approach if she’s the incoming president’s pick as vice chair for supervision, calling for more “discipline” with policymaking.

By Caitlin Mullen • Jan. 10, 2025

BlackRock asks FDIC for March deadline on passivity agreement, gets a February one

An executive warned against “hastening the finalization of a completely new regulatory framework in a two-week period” in a letter to the regulator.

By Dan Ennis • Updated Jan. 13, 2025

CFPB brings back sandbox but keeps competition emphasis

The bureau’s policies restore the no-action letter and sandbox designation, but feature some tweaks aimed at correcting past “shortcomings.”

By Caitlin Mullen • Jan. 9, 2025

JPMorgan Chase joins the 5-days-a-week RTO wave

“We know that some of you prefer a hybrid schedule and respectfully understand that not everyone will agree with this decision,” the bank wrote in a memo. “We think it is the best way to run the company.”

By Caroline Colvin , Dan Ennis • Updated Jan. 10, 2025

Fintech Dave alters fee structure, blasts DOJ over amended lawsuit

The cash advance online platform called the lawsuit “a continued example of government overreach.”

By Rajashree Chakravarty • Jan. 8, 2025

6 banking trends to watch in 2025

Donald Trump’s return to the White House is expected to make an impression on a number of facets in banking – from regulation to M&A to crypto.

By Dan Ennis , Rajashree Chakravarty , Caitlin Mullen , Gabrielle Saulsbery • Jan. 8, 2025