There has been a lot in the news this week. Take a look at this weekly recap from my Twitter feed (top stories have been highlighted in bold):
Trending
‘Banking is necessary, banks are not’ – Bill Gates on mobile banking and the lives of the poor http://t.co/0pBa8C7mK2 pic.twitter.com/QLmf4H0T2t
— Jim Perry (@mi_jim) January 22, 2015
Mergers, Acquisition – Expansion, Consolidation
- DATCU Credit Union 52,000 sq ft headquarters to be completed in the first quarter of 2016 http://bit.ly/15kpP4a
- Members of IL’s Morrison Community Federal Credit Union have approved plans to merge with IA’s Gateway Credit Union http://bit.ly/1uC0Vti
- Closure of PNC branch in Newfoundland, PA is latest in a long list of businesses closing their doors in NE PA county http://bit.ly/15DAFDn
- CA’s Opus Bank makes $25M acquisition that will spur expansion http://bit.ly/1E9zv0x
- Royal Bank of Canada to buy Los Angeles-based City National for $5.4 billion http://on.wsj.com/1upd66S
- Corning Credit Union branch will close March 27 “due to a lack of long-term growth opportunities for the branch” http://bit.ly/1CjiOOv
- Technology Credit Union acquires Sunnyvale credit union http://bit.ly/1y2aJqV
- In California, Pacific Commerce Bank and Vibra Bank announce approval of merger application http://bit.ly/1CTsSf6
- West Valley Bank acquires Gila Bend branch from National Bank of Arizona http://bit.ly/158WUQG
- Century Bank closes on merger with Valley National Bank of Española http://bit.ly/1woEsd8
- Wisconsin Bank & Trust (subsidiary of Heartland Financial USA) completes merger w/Sheboygan’s Community Bank & Trust. http://shebpr.es/1xWh5YU
- Chino Federal Credit Union looking to merge with Albuquerque’s First Financial Credit Union http://bit.ly/1DXLGO7
- Disgruntled customers in tiny Croom, Ireland leave coffin at Ulster Bank branch in closure protest http://bit.ly/1wnBaXw
- Bank of America to sell its commercial banking center location in downtown Kalamazoo, MI http://bit.ly/1DXES32
- Silver Springs, NY’s M&T Bank branch to close April 15 http://bit.ly/1zrcpRp
- IL’s Washington Savings Bank wants to merge with a Mattoon Savings & Loan http://bit.ly/1yySVr0
- A merger between Salina, KS-based Sunflower Financial and Denver-based First Western Financial has been called off. http://bit.ly/1uio5Vc
- Farmers Bank & Trust completes acquisition of 1st Bank of Texarkana http://bit.ly/1yg5FnJ
- First NBC in New Orleans enters Florida market with acquisition of failed bank http://bit.ly/1xKNoKm
Branch Evolution
- 58% of Hispanic Millennials are open to non-traditional banks with no branches like @AllyBank or @CapitalOne360 http://bit.ly/1zD8wsI
- Brad Nolan, @Chase innovations exec., shows how branch of the future = engagement & experience http://bit.ly/1GAzEMN
- The @FinancialBrand‘s @JimMarous tackles the question “Can Branch Banking Be Saved?” http://bit.ly/1xCWyti
- Southwest Idaho’s Pioneer Federal Credit Union is the first financial institution in Idaho to deploy video teller http://bit.ly/1urYbOU
- Great info from @dmgerbino on @BankMobile‘s fee-free branchless banking in The @FinancialBrand http://bit.ly/1ztsHcH
- Danbury, CT’s Union Savings Bank CEO rethinks the branch concept http://bit.ly/1EhekqT
Marketing & Branding
- FYI: this year, #Millennials will overtake Baby Boomers http://pewrsr.ch/1y5iEZj via @pewresearch
- Attn: bank marketers – #mustread @ctreff‘s “Closing The Gap Between Targeting And Performance” http://bit.ly/1xWpKud via @OracleMktgCloud
- Suncoast Credit Union pays $5M for Florida SouthWestern State College arena name http://newspr.es/1KYq71H
- Vancouver, WA’s iQ Credit Union launch pilot program w/5th graders at Marshall Elementary School http://bit.ly/1Elg3ez
- Banking start-ups adopt new tools for lending – using data science and unconventional indicators of behavior http://nyti.ms/14VwvFG
- Marketplace lending is doing what banks can’t…and here’s why it matters: http://bit.ly/1yyekAA via @crowdfundinside
Mobile & Digital Transformation
- Once again, @Starbucks (with 13M+ mobile users) shows Google & Apple how to do #mobile payment http://onforb.es/1y7ECX0
- Faster. Easier. Smarter. @AllyBank launches new online banking platform. http://on.mktw.net/1E72ly
- Amazon axes mobile wallet http://bit.ly/1Cjpzjs
- Get ready for the next ApplePay milestone: Apple Watch commerce http://bit.ly/152H0Hh via @LetsTalkPaymnts
- Another look: banks, resolving not to fall behind, turn to Apple Pay http://bit.ly/1IXChpI
- In case you missed this: Bank of America customers activate 1.1 million cards on Apple Pay http://bit.ly/1yyX3HF
- Suburban Chicago-based Wintrust Financial is rolling out 190 “cardless cash” ATMs http://bit.ly/1zrajAV
Industry News
- Survey by http://CreditCards.com : 7M Americans have hidden bank or credit card account from spouse/significant other http://trib.in/1EALUIh
- More job cuts at banks globally seen in 2015 in poll of investors http://bloom.bg/1t1Ic9d
- Workplace journalist @KarenHigWork looks at HR challenges facing the global banking sector in 2015 http://onforb.es/1umetTO via @Forbes
- Fair or not, Bank of America remains deeply unpopular – cited among 10 most hated companies in America http://bit.ly/1ynkUuZ
- In another expansion of its financial services offerings, Walmart to cash in on tax returns http://bit.ly/1E1LDAM
- Directors’ battle takes shape at Tuscaloosa’s Alabama One Credit Union http://bit.ly/1L078UH
- Promotion puts Andy Cecere in line to be U.S. Bank’s next CEO http://strib.mn/1yHAJM4
- O Bee Credit Union, which was created to serve an Olympia brewery, has opened its doors to a new industry: marijuana http://bit.ly/1Bbc5qt
- FYI: total assets of US commercial banks on 1/7/15 was $15.2 trillion, up 39% since beginning of the Great Recession http://bit.ly/1wmXKiW
- A new BofA survey shows “millennials are the most likely to have accounts with five or more banking institutions” http://ti.me/1yDhnHS
- Oops! Examiner from @TheNCUA lost audit data from Palm Springs FCU. CU will be reimbursed up to $50K for breach. http://bit.ly/1sURgNb
- You don’t see this every day: Texas man deposits 500 pounds of pennies (collected over 65 years) at bank http://fxn.ws/1zraLPJ
- New York’s attorney general has reached agreement with Five Star Bank over discriminatory mortgages http://bit.ly/1CcMe0m
That’s all for this week. Please share this with your colleagues. If we missed an important story, drop me a note.