ABA Banking Journal Podcast

The cover story of the latest issue of the ABA Banking Journal features an unprecedentedly transparent look into what happens inside a financial institution during and after a ransomware attack. On the latest episode of the ABA Banking Journal Podcast — sponsored by Intrafi — Evan Sparks shares the true story of this anonymized bank and how it tackled what could have become a crippling ransomware attack. Sparks discusses:

• How ...

First quarter earnings reports are done, and bank shareholder meetings are currently going on — and rarely have these activities been in the public spotlight as now in the wake of three significant bank failures. On the latest episode of the ABA Banking Journal Podcast — sponsored by Intrafi — ABA Banking Journal Contributing Editor Paul Davis discusses:

• The overall resilience seen in the banking sector’s first-quarter earning...

The CFPB’s final rule implementing Section 1071 of the Dodd-Frank Act represents major change to how banks process and handle small business loans — taking what in many banks is a bespoke, tailored financial product and requiring a whole new way of doing business. On the latest episode of the ABA Banking Journal Podcast — sponsored by Intrafi — ABA SVP Kitty Ryan discusses:

• An overview of the Section 1071 final rule.
• Implement...

• Key implementation deadlines for FedNow in 2023.
• How FedNow compares to existing instant paymen...

For many small business owners, the first step on the credit ladder is the hardest, and they may miss opportunities to build business credit and grow their business while relying on personal credit instead. On the latest episode of the ABA Banking Journal Podcast — sponsored by R&T Deposit Solutions — Amegy Bank EVP Jevaughn Sterling talks about Zions Bancorporation’s Small Business Diversity Banking Program, organized as an “speci...

How can community bank emerging leaders take initiative in innovation? The latest episode of the ABA Banking Journal Podcast — sponsored by R&T Deposit Solutions — features a conversation with Tim Shangle, AVP for innovation and data analytics at ChoiceOne Bank in Sparta, Michigan. Shangle, who is also vice chair of ABA’s Emerging Leaders Council, advises bankers to take small steps and explore what new technologies — say, ChatGPT ...

Revisit the critical days of March and April 2020 in Washington on the latest episode of the ABA Banking Journal Podcast. In this episode — sponsored by Intrafi — former Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Mark Calabria discusses his new book Shelter from the Storm: How a COVID Mortgage Meltdown Was Averted. Calabria recounts the key decisions made in designing COVID-19 forbearance policies for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac-owned ...

After the fallout from the Silicon Valley Bank failure, the ABA Washington Summit is one of the most important events to hear from the banking policymakers shaping the response — including Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and all “big four” in Congress: Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Ranking Member Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and House Financial Services Committee Chairman Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) and Ranking Me...

How does a community bank whose bread and butter was mortgage lending make the business sustainable in a time when mortgages have increasingly moved to the nonbank sector? “We made a conscious decision,” says Benjamin Bochnowski, CEO of $2 billion-asset Peoples Bank in Munster, Indiana. “We had to modernize it and help it grow; it couldn’t exit as a small mortgage operation that only originating $40 million a year in mortgages.”

On...

As a bank leader, Alicia Wade notes that we’re at a unique moment that won’t recur for many years: having four generations, from Baby Boomers to Gen Z, working alongside each other. “Being able to have four generations in the workplace and understand what each of them values and what we can learn from each other” allows not just for top-down mentorship but for cross-generational learning and inspiration, she notes. “I have mentors ...

For Valentine’s Day, the ABA Banking Journal Podcast — sponsored by xChange — brings you a classic boy-meets-girl love story. Virginia Rollins had moved to Washington, D.C., as a young woman in the 1950s and got a job as a teller at Industrial Bank, a Black bank still operating in the nation’s capital. A young bank customer named Ben Ali came in to make a deposit, but he was smitten with Virginia and left his phone number too.

To m...

In 1903, Maggie Lena Walker became the first Black woman to charter a U.S. bank when she opened the St. Luke Penny Savings Bank in Richmond, Virginia, as the bank’s first president. In a classic replay episode of the ABA Banking Journal Podcast — sponsored by xChange — historian Shennette Garrett-Scott tells the story of Walker and her mission to help Black women find financial empowerment and professional career opportunities.

Gar...

As the Federal Reserve continues its efforts to drive inflation lower this year and next, the ABA Economic Advisory Committee expects stalling economic growth in 2023, followed by a modest recovery in 2024. On the latest episode of the podcast — sponsored by xChange — EAC Chair Simona Mocuta shares the committee’s consensus forecast. The chief economist at State Street Global Advisors also discusses the committee’s 50/50 recession ...

What’s on the horizon for bank innovation and fintech in 2023? In this episode of the ABA Banking Journal Podcast — sponsored by xChange — ABA’s Office of Innovation team explores top tech trends for the year ahead. Among other topics, they discuss the growing role of investment in foundational infrastructure like core processing, how APIs and middleware are helping banks innovate, declining consumer interest in crypto (although d...

“We’re a small bank, and it gets more expensive all the time to run a small community bank,” says Andy Anderson, president and CEO of Bank of Anguilla in Anguilla, Mississippi. “As long as we can do this profitably and remain in our community, that’s what we want to do. [CDFI] designation has helped us tremendously over the last few years to remain here and serve our community.”

In this episode of the ABA Banking Journal Podcast — ...

What’s on the banking industry’s policy radar for 2023? ABA’s Government Relations Council recently met in Washington, D.C., and GRC Chair Cathy Owen joins the podcast — sponsored by xChange — to recap the topics of consideration as the association prepares its banker-led Blueprint for Growth for the coming year. Highlights include driving a healthy and inclusive economy, supporting a dynamic and innovative banking industry and pro...

As the end of the year draws near, banking journalist and analyst Paul Davis joins the ABA Banking Journal Podcast, sponsored by Intrafi Network, to discuss the bank mergers and acquisitions outlook for 2023. Among other topics, Davis discusses:

• Factors driving lower M&A rates in 2022
• Why interest rate trends may make banks more attractive to investors and less attractive for acquisitions by banks
• The trend of investment group...

Something old, something new: In 2022, check fraud remains a focus of bank risk professionals, while instant P2P payments are an increasingly popular platform for scammers seeking to take advantage of consumers. With respect to the latter, consumers need to realize that “this stuff behaves like cash,” says Peter Tapling on the latest episode of the ABA Banking Journal Podcast, sponsored by Intrafi Network. That immediacy is why the...