The Banker Next Door

Capital markets are open for banks that need to raise capital, which is great. The question is what will banks use the capital for? Outside of M&A, investors are going to be looking for banks to invest raised capital in ways that will boost a bank’s profitability. At the same time, banks have a lot of pressing needs, particularly with technology. While all these needs are important, they do not all return an immediate impact to the bottom line. If a bank decides to raise capital, they will have to be very careful about how the money is invested. The episode reviews an article from Bank Director titled “The capital markets are wide open for banks, industry observers say.” A link to the article is included below. Link: The Capital Markets Are Wide Open for Banks, Industry Observers Say | Bank Director

As interest rates are set to decrease U.S. Treasurys remain a go to investment for income and safety but are there other alternatives? Municipal bonds, agency mortgage-backed securities, and preferred stock are three potential alternatives. An additional consideration, what is better, a tax-exempt municipal bond or a taxable bond? This episode reviews two articles from The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) titled “Three alternatives to U.S. Treasurys that give you safety and yield” and “Tax-Exempt Munis vs. Taxable Bonds: Which has higher return?”

The SBA has launched a new loan program focusing on manufacturers. The 7(a) Manufacturer’s Access to Revolving Credit (MARC) Loan Program will offer working capital to small manufacturers, which make up 98% of all U.S. manufacturers. The 7(a) MARC loans of up to $950,000 will have a 0% up front fee. The MARC loan limit will be $5 million. Reviewed in this episode is an article from The Business Journals (subscription required) titled “SBA is waiving many loan fees. But only for one industry,” an SBA press release from 9/3/2025, and an SBA procedural notice. Links to the SBA press release and procedural notice are included below. Link: SBA Launches First-Ever Loan Program Dedicated to American Manufacturers | U.S. Small Business Administration Link: Procedural Notice 5000-870260 7(a) Manufacturers' Access to Revolving Credit (MARC loans)

The Banker Next Door (BND) weekly live stream show. Strategy Room provides financial news, commentary, top stories in the business world, economic indicators, and all things banking for the week.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has unleashed on the Fed in his new article “the Fed’s New ‘Gain-of-Function’ Monetary Policy.” The article discusses the Fed’s potential loss of independence, widening inequality in America, how the Fed’s actions have distorted the market, and ends with a call for reform. This article is monumental and historic. Change is coming to the Fed, whether they like it or not. A link to the article is included below. Link: TIE_Sp25_Bessent.pdf

The U.S. now has over 1 thousand billionaires! This episode looks at who some of these billionaires are, what their net worth is, and where do they live. The information covered in this episode comes from an article in The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) titled “What we know about America’s 1,135 billionaires.”

What is the history of the New York Stock Exchange or NYSE? This episode takes us through the humble beginnings of Wall Street in the 1700’s, through the 1800, 1900, and into the 2000’s. The episode reviews an article from The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) titled “A History of the New York Stock Exchange’s Ups and Downs.”

A new analysis from ICBA shows that Credit Union purchases of community banks do in fact have a harmful economic effect on the communities which they mean to serve. This episode reviews an article from ICBA titled “New Analysis Shows Credit Union Acquisitions of Community Banks Harm the Communities That Can Least Afford It.” The analysis looks at the impact on SBA lending and residential mortgage lending in various communities after a credit union purchased a local community bank. A link to the article is included below. Link: New Analysis Shows Credit Union Acquisitions of Community Banks Harm the Communities That Can Least Afford It

This episode reviews a series of articles from S&P Global Market Intelligence (subscription required) detailing the events of the last week as a potentially massive fraud was uncovered involving a subprime auto lender named Tricolor Holdings. The fraud is alleged because, as of yet, no criminal charges have been filed. The potential losses are currently rippling through multiple banks including JPMorgan and Fifth Third Bancorp.

The Banker Next Door (BND) weekly live stream show. Strategy Room provides financial news, commentary, top stories in the business world, economic indicators, and all things banking for the week.

This episode examines a blog post from PCBB titled “Regulatory gaps slow US AI compliance adoption.” The blog post details how U.S. banks are falling behind global peers in adopting AI for compliance purposes. Federal deregulation and a patchwork of state rules seem to be impeding progress. Also considered is overall AI adoption and how the adoption is high, but disruption is low. Furthermore, companies have invested a lot of money in AI and so far, are getting zero return. A link to the blog post is included below. Link: Regulatory Gaps Slow US AI Compliance Adoption Link: ai_report_2025.pdf

This episode examines an article from Independent Banker Magazine titled “4 regulatory challenges community banks face today.” The article considers regulatory challenges that community banks are currently dealing with. The article names 4 primary challenges, which include 1) Navigating an uncertain regulatory environment, 2) Addressing supervisory focus on issue remediation, 3) Establish financial resilience, and 4) Monitor nonfinancial risks and internal controls. A link to the article is included below. Link: 4 Regulatory Challenges Community Banks Face Today

This episode examines an article from Bank Director titled “The debanking executive order is here.” Banks should prepare to respond to any potential federal scrutiny concerning relationships that were ended with clients that could be considered conservative-leaning or involved in digital assets. The article breaks down the executive order, considers its legality, and offers five ways banks can prepare for any potential regulatory scrutiny. A link to the article is included below. Link: The Debanking Executive Order is Here | Bank Director

This episode examines Bank Director 2025 Ranking Banking Report. This report is an annual ranking of the 300 largest publicly traded banks. The report ranks the top 25 banks in the U.S. and then breaks down the best banks by total asset size. The categories include $50 billion and above, $5 billion up to $50 billion, and less than $5 billion. Westamerica Bancorp took 1st place for the top 25 banks in the U.S. East West Bancorp took 1st place for banks $50 billion and above. Westamerica Bancorp took 1st place for bank $5 billion to $50 billion. Northeast Community Bancorp took 1st place for banks less than $5 billion. A link to the report is included below. Link: RankingBanking 25 - Flipbook - Page 1

This episode reviews S&P Global Market Intelligence 2025 top banking deposit franchises. The ranking has three categories banks with less than $3 billion in total assets, banks with total assets between $3 billion and $10 billion, and banks with $10 billion or more in total assets. Titan Bank took 1st place for best small community bank deposit franchise. Stride Bank took 1st place for best large community bank deposit franchise. EB Acquisitions Co., LLC took 1st place for best large bank deposit franchise.

The Banker Next Door (BND) weekly live stream show. Strategy Room provides financial news, commentary, top stories in the business world, economic indicators, and all things banking for the week.

This episode examines an article from The Epoch Times (subscription required) titled “The power behind the photo: Why SWIFT, not sanctions, may shape the Ukraine endgame.” Most people are not familiar with the SWIFT system, what it does, and how much power it wields in the flow of global finance. SWIFT – the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication is based in Belgium. While SWIFT is mainly a messaging platform, it can also screen, freeze, and exclude financial transactions from any country in the world. If a country loses access to the SWIFT system, the financial consequences can be disastrous.

This episode examines two articles, one from The Business Journals (subscription required) titled “Real estate commissions are taking a surprising turn after landmark settlement” and one from The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) titled “Why a landmark settlement on realtor fees hasn’t cut costs”. After the landmark real estate industry settlement, it was anticipated that major changes would be coming for real estate buyers and realtor’s commissions. Real estate commissions have remained steady, but agents have reported working harder for the same income.

This episode examines an article from Banking Dive titled “Customers CEO talks lessons learned from Fed enforcement action.” Approximately one year ago the Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank hit Customers Bank with an enforcement action related to its digital assets. With the changes in Presidential Administration, regulatory attitude toward digital assets, new regulations around stablecoins, and improvements at Customers Bank, the CEO goes over lessons learned from this experience. A link to the article is included below. Link: Customers CEO talks lessons learned from Fed enforcement action | Banking Dive

This episode examines the FDIC Quarterly Banking Profile for the second quarter of 2025. Overall results for the banking industry included net income decreased, net interest margin remained relatively unchanged, loan growth accelerated, domestic deposits increased, and asset quality metrics remained generally favorable. The deposit insurance fund (DIF) reserve ratio increased 5 basis points and now exceeds the statutory minimum. A link to the report is included below. Link: FDIC Quarterly Banking Profile - Second Quarter 2025