The Federal Reserve recently outlined that state-member, non-FDIC-insured banks looking to engage in novel banking activities, including work with the crypto industry, will face the same requirements as insured banks. “This principle of equal treatment helps to level the competitive playing field among banks with different charters and different federal supervisors, and to mitigate the … Read more
Lakewood, Colo.-based FirstBank consolidated two of its branches by opening a new space in downtown Denver. The bank opened both a retail branch and a 12,000-square-foot office on the first and 20th floors of the new, 42-floor Optiv Building, respectively, according to a press release. Roughly three-dozen employees will work in the space, which is … Read more
Credit conditions will soften over the next six months as the economy weakens and the Federal Reserve continues to rein in inflation by raising interest rates, according to the American Bankers Association’s latest Credit Conditions Index. The headline credit index slightly increased but remained near its lowest point since the start of the pandemic at … Read more
Madison, Wis.-based Park Bank will soon open a new branch in nearby Cross Plains. Construction on the branch, which will be at 2407 Brewery Road, is expected to begin this spring. The opening is slated for this fall. Last fall, the bank added three associates to its Middleton branch who have a combined more than … Read more
Bank executives expect a recession will strike this year but disagree on the timing of the looming downturn, according to an IntraFi survey of bank CEOs, CFOs, presidents and chief executive officers from nearly 450 U.S. banks. According to the fourth quarter report, 36 percent expect the recession to begin in the second half of … Read more
Farm lending continues to recover after government stimulus dollars reduced the need for loans during the pandemic, according to a recent Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City report. The report, released last month, revealed a 7 percent year-over-year increase in the volume of commercial bank non-real estate farm loans during the fourth quarter of last … Read more
Manufacturing output fell 1.3 percent in December and was down at an annual rate of 2.5 percent in the fourth quarter, according to the Federal Reserve. The drop was reported after manufacturing output fell by 0.6 percent in November. Indexes for durable and nondurable manufacturing fell by 1.1 percent and 1.5 percent, respectively in December, … Read more
Economic conditions were mixed across the Midwest in recent weeks as consumer demand remained strong and labor shortages continued. [Continue]
There will be no economic growth this year as inflation falls below 3 percent, according to a Jan. 20 report from the American Bankers Association’s Economic Advisory Committee. The committee, which includes 15 leading economists from the largest North American banks, projected that the economy will grow by 1.6 percent by the end of 2024. … Read more
Bank CEOs say the rural Midwest economy is improving even as they continue to feel the impact of higher farm input prices and regulations, according to Creighton University’s January Rural Mainstreet Index report. The RMI increased from 50.1 in December to 53.8 this month, the second straight month that the reading has been above the … Read more