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How thrift and mutual banks are benefiting their customers
Thrift banks, otherwise known as savings and loans, focus on turning deposits into consumer mortgage loans. We take a deep dive into what lies at the heart of these community banks’ business models...
Demystifying Bitcoin and Digital Assets
SPONSORED—We sat down with Thomas Grundy for a conversation on demystifying Bitcoin and digital assets. A former regulator and compliance professional, Tom shared insights on where Bitcoin...
Why Banks Should Focus on Board Security
SPONSORED | As more bank board executives, directors, and administrators adopt digital board management processes, cybersecurity risks from half-baked digital adoption make them more vulnerable to...
Are Bankers and Customers on the Same Page?
SPONSORED—Vericast surveyed financial services marketers and consumers about their banking goals, priorities, expectations and experiences. Industry experts analyzed the data and identified...
Threat Hunting for Banks: What are the Benefits?
SPONSORED—Threat intelligence is an essential component of every bank’s cybersecurity strategy. Community banks are targets for cybercriminals, which is why being proactive is critical....
Out of Office: Justin Kitzinger
Justin Kitzinger, a private banking officer at $6 billion-asset Bankers Trust in Des Moines, Iowa, dedicates 200 hours each year to volunteer firefighting.
Rhonda Thomas-Whitley: Defending overdraft protection for consumers
Overdraft programs and policies are once again in the sights of officials in Washington. ICBA takes on the fight.
Charles Potts: Back-office innovation
Community bankers are embracing innovation like never before—with impressive results. But with so much emphasis placed on customer-facing products and technologies, innovating back-office...
Brad M. Bolton: Educating future leaders
Focusing on the ‘whys’ helps employees see how decisions fit together in a perfect puzzle for high-performing success, and it motivates them to be contributors to that success.
Rebeca Romero Rainey: Community bankers are all in
Everything feeds into the customer experience, and that ability to meet and exceed customer expectations is what distinguishes us as community bankers.
Technology your remote and hybrid employees need
Remote and hybrid working was once the exception but, for some community bank employees, it’s now the norm. What technology is needed to keep remote workers productive, connected and, most of all,...
The top-performing community banks of 2021
Independent Banker’s annual listing top-performing community banks of 2021 alongside interviews with some of the winners. In true community bank fashion, each has its own story to tell and its own...
Mortgage eClosing: The Path to eSignatures
SPONSORED | The path to eClosing is complex but achievable. During this Dialogue on Demand session, we will uncover the benefits and uses of eSignatures, legislation surrounding eSignatures and...
Prepare for a purchase market and create mortgage efficiencies
SPONSORED | The mortgage industry is very volatile. How can lenders be ready? In this webinar, you’ll learn about how APIs can enhance the experience for both borrowers and lenders and preparing...
Future Security Trends to Bank On
SPONSORED—Financial institutions have a unique set of requirements for security and surveillance, beyond traditional on-premise security camera monitoring. Find out how to navigate the...
Kentucky banks stand tall
After a historic tornado rocked western Kentucky last December, a host of community banks banded together in the spirit of generosity, using their financial power to start relief funds and bolster...
Lindsay LaNore: All in. All heart.
There’s nothing like going above and beyond—but being recognized for it feels pretty great, too.
Why Cybersecurity is No Longer Just an IT Issue—with Jeff Newgard of Bank of Idaho and Kevin Piette of State Bank of Cross Plains
A timely conversation about recruiting and retaining top bank talent in today’s competitive job market with Kim Kirk, COO of Queensborough National Bank & Trust Company and Tommy Marshall,...
Deborah Matthews Phillips: Stop the Durbin Amendment expansion
ICBA and other trade partners join the push for Congress to gain awareness and take action against the harmful financial effects of Reg II.
Charles Potts: Growing small business banking
We live in unprecedented times, filled with new challenges and opportunities for small businesses. Fortunately, community banks have greater access than ever before to advanced solutions and...
Rebeca Romero Rainey: Stories worth telling
This Community Banking Month, I invite you to try something new to spread your story. Share a new development, community project or initiative.
The future of workplace flexibility
The pandemic forced the issue of remote and hybrid working for many employees, and though challenges remain, many companies are looking to accommodate employees’ expectations. We asked how banks...
Long-serving community bankers and their stories
What’s the secret to professional longevity? Four long-serving community bankers share the many ways they’ve grown in their respective careers, how the industry continues to evolve and, most...
The ICBA 22/23 executive committee is all in
The 2022/23 ICBA Executive committee members tell us what advocacy issues they’ll be focused on during their terms, while board members share their words of wisdom for up-and-coming community...
Brad M. Bolton: Advancing our communities
My bank’s tagline is ‘Where dreams meet solutions,’ and it serves as my guiding inspiration at the bank and, now, at the national level. As community bankers, our customers depend on us to keep...
Niche lending ideas: Green products and services
Community banks thrive in niche markets, and lending in new spaces is just one of the ways they serve their communities. As the market for “green” products and services evolves, we asked community...
Three Essential Strategies for a Winning Contact Center Culture
SPONSORED | Contact centers are increasingly expected to deliver more, often with less time and fewer resources. Keeping pace requires going back to employee engagement. Employee and customer...
It’s Time for a Shift: From Transactional to Relational
SPONSORED—While transactions are essential and can exist almost entirely online, the business of banking is about more than transactions. Forward-looking banks are following three guiding...
3 Cybersecurity Challenges Community Banks Should Know
SPONSORED | As the year progresses, hackers are strengthening their attack methods. This article will explore 3 cybersecurity challenges facing the industry in 2022 and why your bank should...
Demystifying and Prosper: How Community Banks Find Success in Fintech Partnerships—with Greg Ohlendorf of First Community Bank and Trust and Joe Ehrhardt of Teslar Software
We have to demystify that fintech is complicated, or fintech is difficult, or fintech is risky or scary. Fintech, to me, is opportunity,” says Greg Ohlendorf, President and CEO, First Community...
First Women’s Bank tackles small business inequity
Dismayed at the lack of business ownership opportunities and advancement afforded to entrepreneurial women, Marianne Markowitz spearheaded a consortium to form a women-founded, women-owned and...
3 Steps to Review Your Core Provider’s Performance
SPONSORED | With big changes happening in fintech, you need to feel confident that your core is delivering the service and support your bank deserves. Learn why it’s important to assess your core...
A community bank-fueled payments rail
A secure, open-loop, cost-saving, customer-accessible, multiplatform P2P payments network might sound too good to be true, but community bank consortium Alloy Labs Alliance hopes to achieve just...
Can fintechs enhance your bank’s marketing campaign?
Customized, well-thought-out interactions are integral to wooing new customers and retaining existing ones. We asked several banking leaders how they’ve employed fintech to ramp up their marketing...
The women leaders inspiring future generations
Women’s History Month is an opportunity to spotlight women leaders who have crafted successful careers in community banking. This trio of executives describe the ways they achieve their goals and...
6 smart marketing moves for 2023
When it comes to customer acquisition tactics, it’s never too early to start thinking about next year’s budget. Here, experts give their take on trends that can freshen up your community bank’s...
Build your community bank's brand with swag
Promotional merchandise, or swag, has long been regarded as a no-brainer approach to branding. Community banks are shedding those thrifty connotations with a mindful approach to company gifting...
Charles Potts: Unlocking better customer connections
When assessing providers, keep in mind that there is no one-size-fits-all marketing solution. The beauty of innovation is that it comes in all shapes and sizes. Your marketing capabilities must fit...
Six ways data can boost your community bank's brand
Combining data with customer feedback can help community banks understand what customers think about their services and turn those thoughts into action.
How to collect positive customer reviews
When customers look up businesses online, reviews are one of the first things they see. These community bankers share how they collect positive reviews, and how to respond to negative ones.
Rebeca Romero Rainey: Tell your story
In a world that’s so full of noise, the story we’re telling is compelling and resonates with our customers, because it’s one of work centered around human connection, care and community.
Robert Fisher: Driving change
Community banks have an amazing reputation on Capitol Hill, and we need to leverage it to drive necessary change.
Lindsay LaNore: The impact of rewards and recognition
Making recognition a part of your bank’s culture is remarkably easy and incredibly beneficial.
Aaron Stetter: Back to Capitol Hill
In person for the first time since 2019, the ICBA Capital Summit in Washington, D.C., is your chance to make your voice heard by your members of Congress—with support from ICBA every step of...
UDAAP policy update for 2022
With a recent executive push for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to resume its enforcement efforts, we look at how banks can increase prevention, mitigate risk and, most important,...
Building greater strength with FICO
SPONSORED | As the world has evolved, so has the way we analyze credit. New and exciting technology makes way for innovative algorithms that give us a more defined look at an even greater data set.
Developing leaders in mortgage lending – Navigating uncertainty with leadership strategies
SPONSORED—Will the high loan origination activity originally witnessed in 2020 continue over time? Numbers from 2021 would indicate that a decline is underway. Download Finastra’s white paper...
Southern Bancorp is building wealth for everyone
As CEO of Southern Bancorp, Darrin Williams wants to promote relationships between community banks and CDFIs to create more prosperous communities.
Success stories of Black-owned banks and their customers
After a long history of systemic economic oppression, Black-owned banks are playing a key role in improving the economic fortunes of their communities. We asked community bankers and their...
Why community banks should partner with fintechs
With consumer expectations seeming to evolve faster every year, community banks could consider partnering with a fintech to keep up with technological innovation.
Robert Fisher: The journey ahead
From new competition and new technology to new regulation, we have adapted and continued to offer the relationship-centric experience that our communities, customers and missions depend on.
5 Questions: Is it Time to Refresh Your Check Processing Solutions?
SPONSORED—Deciding when it’s time to upgrade your check processing and payments infrastructure can be tricky. Your aging solutions are likely still “getting the job done,” but at what cost to...
Community banks are thriving in Texas
With the record growth of San Antonio, Houston and Austin, southern Texas is becoming a hub for business. Here’s how four community banks are thriving in this environment.
The benefits of micro-lending programs
Despite the large number of PPP loans distributed to small businesses, funding didn’t always reach those who needed it the most. These community banks are working to fix that through microlending...
Rebeca Romero Rainey: Stronger together
It’s hard to put my finger on exactly what makes ICBA LIVE so special, but I believe it is in a shared sense of purpose that arises whenever community bankers convene.
Finding and Keeping Talent – With Kim Kirk of Queensborough National Bank & Trust Company and Tommy Marshall of Georgia Fintech Academy
A timely conversation about recruiting and retaining top bank talent in today’s competitive job market with Kim Kirk, COO of Queensborough National Bank & Trust Company and Tommy Marshall,...
How to respond to buy now, pay later
Consumers are increasingly interested in buy now, pay later products, which are cutting into credit card usage. Here’s what community banks need to know about these products and how they can take...
How to build up your Gen Z customer base
Generation Z represents one in four Americans today, and they’re looking for their bank. To attract this new generation of potential customers, community banks must understand what banking means to...