Online banks and fintechs are capturing 28% of new primary checking accounts among Millennials and Gen Z, eight percentage points above their existing share among those generations, according to J.D. Power. Branches are still an advantage for traditional banks, but younger customers also want accounts that help them avoid fees and manage their finances.
“Miki Bowman: Cutting Red Tape”
Fed Vice Chair Michelle Bowman is pursuing a regulatory agenda aimed at reducing burdens and tailoring supervision to banks’ size and risk. Community bankers have largely welcomed her approach, while critics have expressed concerns about lower capital requirements and cuts to the Fed’s regulation and supervision policy staff.
“What to Know About the New CSBS AI Supervisory Framework”
The framework for evaluating financial institutions’ AI use and related risks creates no new legal obligations, but it gives state-chartered banks a clearer picture of what examiners may look for, including governance, risk assessments and third-party tools, as individual states decide whether and how to adopt it.
“OCC Blasts Debanking Instances by JPMorgan, Others in Report”
Nine large banks had policies or practices from 2020 through 2025 that may have influenced decisions to deny services based on customers’ political or religious views, the OCC said. The agency is considering further supervisory changes, while the CFPB is separately reviewing complaints and other data for potential debanking violations—with its own announcement signaling a more aggressive approach than the article suggests.
“Advancing Technology Stacks Through Conferences”
Technology implementation and costs are a major concern for community banks, with 81% of bankers rating the issue as extremely or very important in a 2025 CSBS survey. Industry conferences can help banks find technology providers and evaluate potential solutions as they modernize their technology stacks, the ICBA says.
“He Crafted a Crypto Law for Trump—as His Company Got Millions from a Crypto Giant”
A company co-owned by former White House crypto adviser Bo Hines received millions of dollars through an arrangement involving Tether while Hines was helping advance the GENIUS Act, according to the WSJ. A representative for Hines said he had stepped away from company business, was unaware of its Tether dealings while in government, and received no Tether-derived funds during that time. Tether later hired Hines to lead its U.S. operations.
In Other News
A Vincent van Gogh painting not seen publicly for more than 60 years could set an auction record, rapid advances in AI-powered math are raising concerns about the security of cryptography, and corporate technology leaders are wrestling with how to control AI costs without discouraging productive employee use.
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