Bank channel

Using new technology from Salesforce, the Boston bank is arming staffers with real-time customer data in a bid to increase wallet share, speed up decisions and help it handle problems quickly and efficiently.

A founding director at Touchmark Bancshares in Georgia claims he was ousted after questioning the bank's strategy. Now he is lobbying for the company's sale.

Emboldened by a newfound sense of what their investment programs offer, more banks are turning to wirehouses for recruits.

Citizens Bank of Edmond, a $252 million-asset bank led by Jill Castilla, is eager to show that a lack of size shouldn't hold a bank back from doing things differently. The bank is embracing new ATM technology and active use of social media.

Executive pay packages have long been structured to reflect performance. But one key task that often gets short shrift from bank directors and CEOs is succession planning. Now pressure is mounting for that to change.

If Tim Geithner had his way, the government would have bailed out Washington Mutual bondholders and prevented Wells Fargo from acquiring the floundering Wachovia Corp. in 2008, ensuring instead that it was awarded to Citigroup

Though Vice Chairman Thomas Hoenig and board member Jeremiah Norton must defer to Chairman Martin Gruenberg on setting the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s agenda, the two directors have still found ways to affect policy, particularly on new capital rules for the biggest banks.

Federal Reserve Board Chair Janet Yellen said Thursday that she has asked the White House to appoint a community banker to the central bank's board.

A pair of acquisitions announced this week is creating chatter about out-of-market interest in Florida's banks. Still, some caution that bankers must be mindful of past mistakes by other long-distance buyers.

The company will soon exceed $50 billion in assets, which will bring with it added scrutiny and possible pressure to lower its dividend.

FINRA barred a former bank advisor from the industry for attempting to swindle customers and fined and suspended two others for violating standards of commercial honor.

Fitch Ratings downgraded New Jersey's general obligation rating to A-plus from AA-minus on Thursday.

In the first quarter of 2014, the wealth management division of Bryn Mawr Trust generated $8.9 in revenue, up 6.7% year-over-year.

In the bank channel, fee business is still the exception, not the rule. Likewise, working in teams is not the norm.

Program managers are constantly juggling, trying to keep advisors and bank management happy. We've sliced and diced the data to present our annual Top 20.

Hugh "Skip" McGee isn't just the head of a British bank's Americas division. He is one of its most lavishly paid officials and the only former Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. alumnus on the executive committee.

Noninterest income seemed to stabilize some during the first quarter, though smaller banks are still struggling to see meaningful increases in fees.

Banks will continue to seek new customer referrals from satisfied clients, but the larger opportunity rests with current customers.

Brokerage units carried the day for many bank wealth management businesses as their trust units languished.

Barclays said Hugh "Skip" McGee will step down as chief executive officer of its Americas unit, almost six years after the British bank bought the operation from the bankrupt Lehman Brothers Holdings.