Top Ten Questions For New Technology Acquisition and Integration

Posted inOperations
Our industry – and the entire world – are awash with technology in all its forms. Making good decisions regarding technology acquisition and integration has become a core competency requirement for all companies in general, and for those who have a large number of customers and distribution outlets in particular. Banks are in the second category. What questions should you ask yourself as you consider a new technology-based solution? How compatible is the new solution…

Bank M&A Outlook for 2026

Posted inCommercial Banking
Regional bank dealmaking heated up considerably in the second half of 2025. Comptroller Gould’s comments on the removal of artificial bank size regulatory heightened standards blew significant winds into regional banks’ sails, yielding, a wave of activity in that space that has not been present for many years. Scale, geographic diversification, and physical presence in attractive markets were the drivers of this large bank mergers. The regulatory step-back allowed market forces to prevail, and, with…

Is the Branch Dead? Take Two

Posted inCommercial Banking
I wrote this article decades ago. When I reread it recently it reaffirmed that, the more things seem different, the more they are the same. “We have fought for years to keep our customers out of the branch; now we are fighting to get them back in so we can sell the, a variety of products and services,“ says one community banker, echoing the feelings of many others. But what do the customers want? Is…