Reasons for Being Unbanked
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THURSDAY JUNE 24, 2021 VOL. 186 No. 120 AMERICANBANKER.COM Follow us on Twitter @AmerBanker Nicolet Bankshares 5 acquiring rival Wisconsin bank for $219 million Reasons for being In buying the $1.5 billion-asset County Bancorp, Nicolet would become the second- unbanked largest bank in Wisconsin and the state’s No. 1 dairy lender. It’s the second bank Balance minimums lead the list of explanations unbanked acquisition deal Nicolet has announced this consumers give for not having a bank account. The proposed quarter. Page 5 FedAccounts would bar such limits. See story on page 2 P2P payments surged 6 during pandemic. So did the complaints about them. Lack funds to meet mininum balance requirements Gripes against peer-to-peer payments 29% services spiked during the past year as U.S. Don't trust banks consumers flocked to Venmo, Cash App, 16.1% Zelle and the like to transfer money. Page 6 Problems with personal ID, credit or former bank account 8% Fees are too high Sterling Bancorp’s AI assistant 7.3% 7 tackles half of customer calls Privacy fears The suburban New York bank says Skye, 7.1% its conversational artificial intelligence assistant, is doing the work of 100 full-time 0% 5% 10% 15%20% 25%30% employees. Page 6 Source: FDIC survey in 2019 of 32,904 households More than prepaid: Payoneer 8 broadens its sales pitch ahead of public listing The fintech, which is going public through a dailybriefing Cross River buys lending merger with a special-purpose acquisition 3 fintech, exec says company, has updated its logo and ‘more to come’ messaging to emphasize its capabilities FedAccounts billed as gift to The bank’s holding company, CRB Group, in e-commerce and digital marketing. It’s 1 bankers. Many are dubious. has acquired PeerIQ, an online lending part of a trend of traditional payments such No-fee digital bank accounts subsidized by marketplace data provider backed by as TransferWise, Fattmerchant and even the Federal Reserve would help community the former CEOs of Morgan Stanley and Mastercard repositioning themselves to win banks draw in new customers and pay for Citigroup. It’s said it wants more deals like over investors. Page 8 technology upgrades, proponents of the idea this one. Page 3 say. But it’s a hard sell to executives skeptical $36B wealth manager eyes of government involvement in retail Arkansas CDFI channeling 9 credit union expansion with LPL banking. (See chart above.) Page 2 4 funds from Square into apps Most credit unions don’t offer planning for underbanked services, and affiliating with the No. 1 IBD Fifth Third buying Southern Bancorp, a community could help CUNA Brokerage change that, the 2 health care lender Provide development financial institution, will firm’s president says. Page 9 The fintech specializes in lending to dentists, devote part of a multimillion-dollar veterinarians and other solo providers investment from the payments giant to Loan modifications are up looking to grow or establish their own developing technology that helps consumers 10 for the first time in a year, practice. Page 3 budget, buy a home and more. Page 4 FHFA finds Evaluations for payment reduction still represent a relatively small share of home retention actions but their uptick could add incrementally to servicers’ workloads. Page 10 THURSDAY JUNE 24, 2021 AMERICANBANKER.COM PAGE 2 the option to do so, also. The Fed would community banks,” said Lev Menand, an CONSUMER BANKING reimburse banks with assets under $10 academic fellow at Columbia Law School billion each quarter for the costs they incur who co-authored a 2018 paper outlining to set up and operate the accounts; the the benefits of a public banking option. “It FedAccounts amount of reimbursement has not been would bring in millions of households that specified. are currently not in the system. … And that billed as gift Bankers’ main objection to the legislation sort of thing, entrance into the mainstream is that the accounts would be offered money and payment system, means that through the Postal Service, an independent there are more people who are able to enter to bankers. government agency that the industry the market for financial products.” believes isn’t equipped to offer basic banking Mehrsa Baradaran, a professor at Many are services. They also oppose the Federal University of California, Irvine School of Reserve’s involvement in banking activities Law and author of “How the Other Half that traditionally have been conducted in Banks,” said that offering free FedAccounts dubious. the private sector. to consumers at bank branches ultimately But advocates of the legislation contend it would increase banks’ lending opportunities. By Neil Haggerty could be a boon for the industry. “You can ask most bankers and they June 23, 2021 Saule Omarova, a professor of corporate would say that the deposit gets you in the WASHINGTON — Senate Banking law and financial regulation at Cornell Law door, but the real money, of course, is in Committee Chairman Sherrod Brown has School, said that the proposal would help lending,” Baradaran said. spent months advocating for his legislation smaller banks that are struggling to keep up Jesse Van Tol, CEO of the National to offer all consumers free government- with advances in technology. Community Reinvestment Coalition, said backed digital bank accounts available “For small banks this really is their kind that FedAccounts could help banks attract through bank branches and U.S. Postal of best chance of longer-term survival customers who don’t trust banks with their Service offices. in the current environment within the money. While the proposal has been met with industry itself … with all of this technology “I do think that historically products widespread opposition from the banking and digitization,” she said. “Big Wall Street that have the imprimatur of the federal industry, Brown argues the legislation will banks, like JPMorgan and Bank of America, government are helpful in overcoming that not only bring new customers into bank or big tech companies, like the Amazons and trust deficit,” Van Tol said. branches, but also help smaller banks build Facebooks of the world, have a structural Roughly 16% of unbanked consumers their technology infrastructure. advantage that cannot be eroded.” cited a lack of trust in financial institutions “It’s getting harder and harder for small Other advocates say that banks will be as the main reason why they don’t have bank banks to compete for new customers when able to cross-sell to new customers who walk accounts, according to the FDIC survey. big tech companies can afford to spend through the doors of their branch locations Minimum balance requirements were an billions on marketing and technology,” to access FedAccounts. even bigger factor — 29% all unbanked cited the Ohio Democrat said in statement to “I think that Sen. Brown is totally correct balance minimums at financial institutions American Banker. “Under my proposal to say that his legislation would be an avenue as the main reason they don’t have bank for no-fee accounts, small banks would for strengthening the business model of accounts. Other reasons include high fees, be reimbursed for the operating costs of providing these accounts, giving them an affordable way to attract and retain new Established 1836 One State Street Plaza, 27th floor, New York, NY 10004 customers for the long run.” Phone 212-803-8200 AmericanBanker.com The financial industry remains skeptical of Brown’s bill, which was introduced in the Editor in Chief Alan Kline 571.403.3846 Copy Editor Neil Cassidy 212.803.8440 early months of the coronavirus pandemic Managing Editor Dean Anason 770.621.9935 when the government was struggling to get Reporters/Producers stimulus payments to unbanked consumers. Executive Editor Bonnie McGeer 212.803.8430 Laura Alix 860.836.5431, Kate Berry 562.434.5432 More than 5% of Americans are unbanked, Washington Bureau Chief Joe Adler 571.403.3832 according to a 2019 survey by the Federal Executive Editor, Technology Miriam Cross 571.403.3834 Deposit Insurance Corp. Penny Crosman 212.803.8673 Jim Dobbs 605.310.7780 Brown’s bill would give all consumers BankThink Editor Rachel Witkowski 571.403.3857 access to free digital bank accounts, known John Heltman 571.403.3847, Allissa Kline 716.243.2679 Community Banking Editor Paul Davis 336.852.9496 as FedAccounts, that would be held at the Hannah Lang 571.403.3855 Federal Reserve and accessible at bank Contributing Editor Daniel Wolfe 212.803.8397 John Reosti 571.403.3864, Gary Siegel 212.803.1560 branches and post offices. Fed-member Digital Managing Editor banks would be required to offer the Christopher Wood 212.803.8437 Kevin Wack 626.486.2341 accounts, and nonmember banks have For up to date and complete coverage go to AmericanBanker.com THURSDAY JUNE 24, 2021 AMERICANBANKER.COM PAGE 3 credit or personal identification issues, and that lower-income Americans need easier middle-market and corporate clients,” Greg privacy concerns. FedAccounts would have access to the financial system say that Carmichael, Fifth Third’s chairman and not minimum balance requirements or Brown’s FedAccounts legislation would be CEO, said in the press release. account fees. a win-win for customers and community Provide specializes in practice lending to Brown’s legislation still faces an uphill banks. health care professionals looking to grow climb to enactment. Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., “There’s something in this bill for or establish their own practice. Its clients the top Republican on the Senate Banking everyone,” said Porter McConnell, campaign include dentists, veterinarians, optometrists panel, said he would fight the legislation director at Take on Wall Street.