In a data snapshot, the CFPB highlighted some of the unique challenges facing rural Americans, including an increased reliance on physical bank branches, given the limited access to high-speed internet and online banking options in many of these communities.
As bank consolidation continued, between 2012 and 2017, the number of bank branches declined by 7% across all counties, according to a new research study published by the Federal Reserve today.
“The American economy in general is the best in the world at allocating new capital to rapidly growing sectors, and that’s the number-one thing you want from your banking and financial system,” Cowen says.
If we aren’t able to find a way to backfill areas hit hard by bank consolidation, the nation’s impressive economic recovery and growth will leave those towns behind.
With a powerful personal story and real-world banking experience, Jelena McWilliams is shaking up the FDIC.
Small cities, small towns and rural areas are facing a variety of structural headwinds, from demographic declines to globalization to the digital transformation of the economy. But locally owned community banks remain a strong countervailing force to help these communities navigate the transition.
On the latest episode of the ABA Banking Journal Podcast, Scott discusses how she teamed up with investors in her community to keep Union State Bank independent and provides advice for community bankers seeking to follow the same path.
Community bank locations have remained present in rural markets at roughly the same rate over the past two decades, even as consolidation means that bank headquarters have closed in many of these markets, Federal Reserve Vice Chairman for Supervision Randal Quarles said today at an industry event in St. Louis.
Despite industry consolidation, America’s banks remain strong and well-capitalized.
On the latest issue of the Newsbytes Podcast, guests Brittany Kleinpaste and Monica C. Meinert discuss the ongoing macro-trend of bank consolidation — why it’s happening, how it’s accelerated over the past decade and what strategies banks are employing to determine their own destiny.