ABA Banking Journal Podcast

Virtually all banks engage in strategic planning, but how do they ensure the strategic plan actually drives performance and doesn't just get left in a binder on the shelf? On the latest episode of the ABA Banking Journal Podcast — sponsored by Q2 Software — Exchange Bank's Kevin Bender discusses tactics for making strategic planning a process that engages employees and board members in the future of the bank, drive...

What kind of difference can a single ratio make? In a new ABA DataBank essay, ABA's Patrick Mitchell and Brittany Kleinpaste discuss the FDIC's 2% Designated Reserve Ratio target for the Deposit Insurance Fund. This target — established by statute but set at the FDIC's discretion — is a level higher than the DIF's Minimum Reserve Ratio of 1.35%, and it has been 2% since it was first established in 2010.

On the latest e...

On the latest episode of the ABA Banking Journal Podcast — sponsored by Q2 Software — ABA economist Dan Brown discusses the recent release of Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data for 2025. He examines several trends, including the varying composition of bank mortgage loans in different regions, where banks face the stiffest nonbank competition in the mortgage market, a recent rebound in refinancings and a growing ge...

To mark the 250th anniversary of Independence Day this week, this classic replay episode of the ABA Banking Journal — sponsored by Q2 Software — explores the role of banking and finance in the American Revolution and the founding era. John Steele Gordon is an acclaimed economic historian whose books include Hamilton's Blessing, The Great Game and An Empire of Wealth; he is also the ABA Banking Journal's "From ...

On the latest episode of the ABA Banking Journal Podcast, ABA's Heather Trew breaks down recent news about the president's executive order on illegal immigration and the financial system and the advisory from the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, the OCC, the FDIC and others on red flags associated with illegal immigration. Trew covers:

• An overview of the executive order and advisory
• Financial typologies of suspicious ac...

In an environment with higher-yielding options, how can banks compete for effectively for deposits? On the latest episode of the ABA Banking Journal Podcast — presented by Nexcess — Marc Womack, who leads the U.S. consumer deposits franchise at TD Bank, discusses his approach to maximizing data, customizing deposit offerings, developing valuable product bundles and using both physical and digital touchpoints to meet con...

Over the past two decades, Pennsylvania-based F.N.B. Corporation has grown its assets from roughly $5.4 billion to $50 billion, grown its net operating income by a similar ratio and more than doubled its retail footprint. On the latest episode of the ABA Banking Journal Podcast — presented by Nexcess — Chairman, President and CEO Vincent Delie discusses his approach to growing the franchise and how F.N.B. is investing i...

Several factors — the growth of the U.S. economy and asset prices, generational transitions and changing values — are reshaping the wealth management and financial advice sectors. More individuals and families are falling into the high-net-worth (investable assets of over $3 million) and ultra-high-net-worth (assets of over $30 million) than ever before. How are banks positioned to capitalize on this evolving marketplac...

In recent years, credit union business lending and the number of credit unions that exceed the statutory cap on member business lending have shot up sharply. What risks do these trends pose to safety and soundness and financial stability? On the latest episode of the ABA Banking Journal Podcast, ABA's Dan Brown and John Vermillion discuss their recent research on the subject. Not only does outsized credit union commercial activity ...

Sponsor banking, or banking as a service, is a unique opportunity for banks — but it requires strategy, discipline and a laser focus on risk. On the latest episode of the ABA Banking Journal Podcast, Amanda Swoverland, president of Hatch Bank, discusses her bank's strategy in BaaS. Among other topics, Swoverland talks about:

• Hatch Bank's evolution as a sponsor bank focused on embedded lending and card issuance.
• How board...

Major tech platforms make billions of dollars from scammers who advertise on their sites, according to reporting from Reuters, and there's not much incentive for them to change their practices — yet. Sens. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) and Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) have introduced the SCAM Act, which would take steps to tackle these scams. ABA strongly supports the SCAM Act, and on this crossover episode of the ABA Banking Journal P...

From one location in Wilmington, North Carolina, Live Oak Bank is the nation's largest Small Business Administration lender and a leading partner in developing technology for community banks. With an uncertain economic and business environment, two top executives from Live Oak Bank joined the ABA Banking Journal Podcast to discuss:

• How Live Oak delivers personalized banking services to a nationwide footprint.
• Where small bus...

If Texas were an independent country, its economy would rank as the world's eighth-largest. "France is the seventh largest economy in the world and I don't think it'll take as much time at all to catch them," laughs Texas Bankers Association Chairman Ron Butler. On the latest episode of the ABA Banking Journal Podcast, Butler — who is also vice chairman and chief administrative officer of $14 billion-asset, Abilene-based Firs...

The discontinuation of penny production in 2025 caused operational challenges for banks when the regional Federal Reserve banks said they would stop accepting pennies for deposit at coin terminals -- accelerating the circulation shortage that's posing challenges for retailers. Today, the Fed reversed that decision, resuming deposits effective Jan. 14. On the latest episode of the podcast, ABA payments expert Steve Kenneally walks...