Industry Outlook

Discover how community banks plan to stand out in 2026. Explore strategies for differentiation, deposit growth, fintech partnerships and loan opportunities

Younger generations prefer debit to credit, but consumers’ appetite for card rewards is still strong. Learn how your community bank can integrate rewards as part of its payments strategy.

Amid the difficult economic environment community banks face today, our 2025 CFO Outlook survey shows a shift in priorities and thoughtful insight into changes to come. We talked with four community bank CFO respondents about what they’ve seen this year and what they expect from competition, tariffs and examiners going into 2026.

Certificates of deposit are nothing new, but these products’ reputation for reliability is leading some community banks to reposition and market them more competitively.

I hope the readers of this column will excuse the lack of decorum in the title, but in reading and listening to the words of the Federal Reserve Board’s members over the past month, I hear a lot of hedging.

Floaters could be the answer to a flat curve.

The Trump administration shows interest in reprivatizing the housing GSEs.

SPONSORED | With larger regional banks increasingly viewing community financial institutions as rising competition, the time to tap into your data advantage is now. But how can you turn customer transaction data into meaningful growth without large technical investments?

While the business of community banking is ongoing, a new year is always a good time to take stock of the challenges and opportunities ahead. We surveyed community bank presidents and CEOs about their plans for 2025—and found that those plans look very different from our last survey in 2022.