Michigan bank plans for the future
Mercantile Bank of Michigan, Grand Rapids, has its eyes on long term profitability, which has not diminished short term gains. [Continue]
Writer: Justin Dullum
Chicago bank jumps into Milwaukee
After two acquisitions, First Midwest Bank, Chicago, closed the third quarter having generated a company record net income of $54.5 million. [Continue]
Banking core startup seeks to be an alternative
Neocova is a St. Louis-based fintech startup that has dropped in to the core provider market for community banks. BankBeat spoke with its founder and CEO, Sultan Meghji, about how a bank’s core can be improved. [Continue]
Regulators back off on hemp requirements
With export markets in flux and farm commodity prices slumping, some ag producers are eager to jump into the newest opportunity: Industrial hemp. Bankers who have a solid understanding of compliance risk are approaching the financing of hemp production cautiously. But what hemp introduces in addition to regulatory challenges is credit risk. [Continue]
Tech company brings something unique: Longevity
Computer Service Professionals, Inc., Jefferson City, Mo., has been serving up tech solutions to community banks since 1988. We talked with Kurt Luebbering, CSPI’s director of operations, about longevity in the rapidly changing tech world. [Continue]
Another day, another lending app to amp your CX
Community bankers suddenly have a lot of tech to choose from when it comes to lending platforms. We talked to Snehal Fulzele, senior vice president and general manager for Cloud Lending, a Q2 company based in Austin, Texas, about what makes its digital lending platform a fit for community banks, and got his take on cybersecurity challenges. [Continue]
Database tech helps land new deposit accounts
ClickSwitch is a Minneapolis-based fintech with a simple goal: Make it easier for people to switch banks. The company started with a focus on moving automatic payments between banks but soon learned the key was to move direct deposit information. [Continue]
Ag tech transforms the field for today’s farmers
Growers Edge Financial, Johnston, Iowa, is carving a path as an innovator in melding financial technology into the ag sector. Joe Young, its co-founder and president, offers insight about how these two worlds come together. [Continue]
Ag credit continues as relief flows
President Donald Trump’s ongoing trade war with China is taking its own toll on the ag industry. But it has come at a time of unprecedented weather events, and the phenomena are a one-two punch. [Continue]
Fintech applied to high-touch wealth management
Technology should provide advantages to every user — bank employees, advisors and clients. Technology is flexible, which enables the incorporation of traditional options like paper quarterly reports. It can enhance the relationship with an advisor but is unlikely to completely replace it, and that’s where Sawtooth comes in. [Continue]