Chime to cut 10% of workforce

CEO Chris Britt cited AI innovations but also a switch to smaller teams, faster movement, higher productivity and in-office work.

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When AI overwhelms the human in the loop

Regulators want finance pros to review AI outputs, but it’s demanding all their attention.

Fed bans ex-Regions, First Interstate bankers

A First Interstate employee allegedly used a customer’s cash at an ATM recycler, the central bank said. A Florida-based Regions relationship banker allegedly withdrew roughly $203,000 from a customer account without consent.

Founder of fintech Increase buys a bank in Washington state

Increase founder Darragh Buckley said the move was a long time coming, as he started the company six years ago with the goal of marrying a bank and technology company.

Associated Bank chief digital officer joins from BMO

Brianna Elsass leaves BMO after a decade of digital leadership positions. She most recently led the Canadian bank’s U.S. digital and technology business.

Capital One gives update on Discover community investment plan

The bank issued a report last month on progress related to the $265 billion it had committed to invest as part of its bid to buy Discover. Charitable organizations offered little support for the statement.

Banc of California sees surprise $251.3M loss

The Los Angeles lender repositioned securities into shorter-duration, higher-yielding products. It also launched the sale of $827 million in real estate and multifamily loans and retired $385 million in debt.

PNC’s wealth unit targets mass-affluent clients with lending option

The Pittsburgh-based lender is pursuing a national identity, and national banks have put more focus on a securities-based lending-type solution in recent years, an executive said.

Fifth Third lures commercial fintech head from HSBC

Ilias Alfaridi previously spent 10-plus years climbing the ranks at Silicon Valley Bank, becoming a senior market manager on its national fintech team.

Activist investor prods Washington bank to sell

Down Range Capital Opportunity Fund is urging the board of $2.3 billion-asset Cashmere Valley Bank to find a buyer, saying its value “can only be unlocked” through a sale.

Ex-CFPB official tapped to lead NJ consumer affairs unit

Christopher Peterson is one of at least two recent state-level consumer advocacy hires, after California named former CFPB chief Rohit Chopra to lead a similar consumer commission.

PNC names CISO, while Truist powers up in wealth

PNC’s new chief information security officer arrives from Fifth Third, and Truist tapped a wealth head amid a broader push to deepen advisory relationships.

Rent fintech Flex applies for ILC charter

The rent payments company would become the latest fintech to seek an industrial loan company charter, a route that has drawn fresh scrutiny from bank trade groups.

Huntington banks on fee growth amid deposit cost competition

The Columbus, Ohio-based lender expects payments and capital markets income to offset pressure on deposit pricing through the rest of the year.

Banco Popular CEO to retire

Puerto Rico’s largest lender is moving its CFO, Jorge Garcia, into its chief executive role when Ignacio Alvarez steps down next year.

BitMEX to shutter after 11 years

The crypto derivatives exchange, once among the most active venues for bitcoin futures, said it will wind down operations after more than a decade.

OCC rejects Wise’s trust charter application over ‘deficiencies’

The British fintech said it plans to submit a new application for a U.S. trust charter under a Section 5.e framework.

Upstart nabs conditional bank charter

“We’ve been challenged consistently throughout the process, and that’s exactly what should happen when an institution is seeking the privilege of becoming a national bank,” an Upstart executive said.

Democrats grill CFPB nominee over CapOne, staff cut plan

Capital One associate Brian Johnson weathered a testy exchange with Sen. Elizabeth Warren over potential conflicts of interest. Johnson said the CFPB has “deficiencies” but is “capable of great good.”

Tasks, not customer tiers should drive bank AI use: Deloitte

Everybody needs “to be heard, comforted, educated in times of high stress,” a Deloitte consultant said. Customers who are lower on the value scale need to receive the same excellent experience “as you’re going to treat them.”

Alaska bank to buy Oregon lender for $167.3M

By acquiring Medford, Oregon-based People’s Bank of Commerce, Anchorage-based Northrim Bank will grow to $4.1 billion in assets and 32 branches.

Black-owned banks Optus, M&F to merge

The roughly $325 million deal, set to close in the fourth quarter, will create a $1.3 billion-asset entity, the largest Black-owned bank in the country, the institutions said Wednesday.

GOP lawmakers press Fed’s Bowman for faster bank M&A approvals

Republicans on the House Financial Services Committee this week urged Michelle Bowman to conduct a review of “long-pending applications” focused on “removing obstacles to deal activity.”

Warren sounds alarm on CFTC staffing

“The CFTC may be sidelined in ensuring [its] mandate due to staffing cuts that threaten to weaken its enforcement,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren wrote in a government watchdog.

Washington credit union to buy Oregon bank

Acquiring Willamette Valley Bank will push Gesa Credit Union’s assets past $7 billion and give the institution its first presence in the Beaver State.

Ohio’s First Financial expands Chicago footprint in $208M deal

Acquiring northwest Indiana’s Finward Bancorp would give First Financial an extra $2 billion in assets and 24 added branches around the nation’s third-largest market.