As always, thanks for sharing great content with us. And I was surprised to the see the AB article on financial firms customers admire most was free to viewing.
Your Missouri Tigers might not be on the list but my Georgia Bulldogs are! I'm too often reminded that the preseason list isn't nearly as important as the postseason list. In other words, it ain't how you start but how you finish.
Have a good weekend.
------------------------------
John Tyson
CFO/SVP
Altamaha Bank & Trust Company
Vidalia, GA
------------------------------
-------------------------------------------
Original Message:
Sent: 08-19-2021 16:15
From: Barb Rehm
Subject: Weekly News Roundup
Usually I try to find stories that are interesting but not necessarily mainstream, but some weeks you just can't avoid huge stories like Kabul falling to the Taliban or an earthquake hitting Haiti, but here's one less-depressing pick: Alabama's football team, once again, topped the AP's Top 25 pre-season poll. Missouri didn't make the list, again, but this means college football is right around the corner! Here's what else you might want to read this week.
"15% of Paycheck Protection Program Loans Could Be Fraudulent, Study Shows"
Two stories about fraud plaguing the Paycheck Protection Program should help traditional banks draw a distinction with fintechs. Research from the University of Texas at Austin found fintech lenders were nearly five times more likely to be linked to suspicious PPP loans than traditional banks, Banking Dive reports. The New York Times story linked above notes more than 15% of the program's 11.8 million loans - totaling $76 billion - have at least one indication of potential fraud.
"The Financial Firms Customers Admire Most"
This headline does not do this American Banker story justice, but then it's hard to write a good headline on a story as broad and deep as this one. The newspaper teamed up with a "creative experience agency" called Monigle to survey customers and rank providers on four dimensions of customer service. It's fascinating, and one bright spot for community banks is this: "when it comes to trustworthiness and the breadth of product offerings … retail banks with less than $200 billion of assets ranked highest with customers, followed closely by retail banks with more than $200 billion of assets and credit unions." The downside for traditional banks is that four of the five credit unions included in the survey landed in the top 10 overall rankings.
"FDIC Seeks Industry Feedback on the Future of Remote Exams"
After 18 months of doing nearly all of its exams remotely, the FDIC wants to hear from bankers about what worked and what didn't. Comments are due in October.
"Who's Who in the Race-Turned-Marathon to Lead OCC"
For all of you with a national charter, American Banker outlines the long (and getting longer) list of Comptroller candidates.
"Companies Are Hoarding Record Cash Amid Delta Fears"
Loan growth was expected to tick up as the pandemic eased, but The Wall Street Journal reports that companies are hoarding cash again, holding a record $6.84 trillion globally.
"FT/McKinsey Business Book of the Year Longlist Revealed"
If you like to read popular business books, check out this best-of-2021 list compiled by The Financial Times and McKinsey.
"Taco Bell's New Design Looks Like a Taco Bank"
A fast-food restaurant is borrowing a page from the banking industry's playbook and installing a drive-through that will use an elevator (vs pneumatic tubes) to deliver meals to waiting customers. Take a look. The prototype is pretty neat.
------------------------------
Barb Rehm
Senior Managing Director
IntraFi Network
Arlington VA
------------------------------