Employee stock ownership plans can be a tool to not only retain talent but also promote engagement with the job.

The Three Dimensions of the Most Digitally Mature Financial Institutions 1. Security and fraud. One of the most eye-opening findings is the paradox between data sophistication and fraud prevention.

Under President Donald Trump’s second term, the banking industry is anticipating a more friendly regulatory environment for getting deals approved. This expectation follows policies under the previous ...

Jackie Stewart is the Executive Editor of Bank Director. She is responsible for writing and editing features for the company’s weekly newsletter and quarterly print magazine and oversees sponsored ...

Large banks could finally get off the sidelines and start pursuing deals again. But a few things would need to happen first, said Bill Burgess, co-head of the financial services investment banking ...

A common maxim in the mergers and acquisitions industry is that very small banks have a tough time finding buyers. But last week, we learned there’s an exception. And it comes from financial ...

While recently the industry focus has been on the historically low number of mergers and acquisitions, the capital markets have also been muted. Lower organic growth, margin compression, interest rate ...

The board of Columbia Banking System was confident of a relatively quick turnaround when it agreed to a $5.1 billion merger with rival Umpqua Holdings Corp. in October 2021, and with good reason: Just ...

Barriers to Dealmaking More than three-quarters of respondents say potential targets’ pricing expectations are a key hurdle to making an acquisition, followed by demands on bank capital (52%), culture ...

The fraud landscape in 2024 has been fraught with old and new risks alike, with check fraud and more sophisticated account takeover on the rise. Too often, cybersecurity training for the board is ...

There is more optimism around commercial real estate lending … or at least there was. In recent years, banks have taken a more cautious approach to CRE as the office sector, in particular, struggled ...