The 411 for First Time Home Buyers

Feb 4, 2020
Venturing into the housing market, especially for the first time, can be intimidating and difficult to navigate without a financial expert in your corner.

Prepare your high school graduate for the financial changes college and the workforce bring

Feb 4, 2020
While classes and dorm rooms and new jobs are on the forefront of high school seniors’ minds, it’s important that they are prepared for how to manage their finances in this next chapter.

5 Beneficial Money Habits you Can Put into Practice Right Now

Feb 4, 2020
When it comes to saving, investing, or getting your finances in order, the process can often feel daunting. Here are some tips to help you get started.

Into the weeds on the QM patch

Feb 4, 2020
The debate over housing-finance reform often ends up deep in the weeds, but the esoteric details are often of the utmost importance to community banks. Recent developments in Washington bear that out.

Leading alongside our teams

Feb 1, 2020
It’s the time of year when we celebrate the relationships in our lives, and it’s a great time to build connections at home, within the community or in the workplace. That doesn’t mean composing Shakespearean sonnets for your coworkers, but it does mean showing up in a meaningful way.

Finding 65 million consumers: Using alternative data to acquire new customers

Jan 31, 2020
Relationship banking is nothing new to community banks. Novel underwriting techniques and recent regulatory guidance have enabled community banks to understand and serve their customers even better.

Navigating a New Decade of Payments

Jan 30, 2020
From concerns about Libra to the development of the Federal Reserve’s FedNow real-time payments settlement service, policymakers are poised for action on behalf of their government, business and consumer constituents.

January 2020 - Online Training Newsletter

Jan 30, 2020
In the wake of #MeToo, a growing number of U.S. states are enacting their own harassment and discrimination prevention laws. California and New York are notable examples; both states have implemented reforms requiring mandatory employee and supervisor training with specific content and/or timing requirements.

Resolve to Take Grassroots Action in 2020

Jan 23, 2020
Your perspective as a community-based, taxpaying business is exceptionally helpful to the people who write and enforce the regulations you (and credit unions) must follow. In this blog post, we’ll touch on our top priorities and give you the tactics you’ll need to help make your banking advocacy resolutions a reality.

New Driver of Payments Growth: Fed Study Shows Debit Transactions As Opportunity for Community Banks

Jan 22, 2020
The latest iteration of the Fed’s triennial study showed that in 2018, noncash payments¹ amounted to $97 trillion, with transaction volume reaching more than 174 billion. That kind of market opens new opportunities for community banks.

Capitalizing on Change in 2020

Jan 14, 2020
In banking, one thing is for certain – and that is change. With the advent of new technologies and solutions, education will be the indispensable complement to ensure community banks can take advantage of the opportunity these changes afford.

ThinkTECH Accelerator: Purposeful Development

Jan 10, 2020
As we welcomed in the new decade, ICBA signaled its ongoing commitment to community banking innovation with the launch of our second ICBA ThinkTECH Accelerator program.

Unexpected Benefits of ICBA’s ThinkTECH Accelerator

Jan 3, 2020
ICBA's Kevin Tweddle discusses unexpected benefits of ICBA's ThinkTECH Accelerator program with community bankers John Buhrmaster of First National Bank of Scotia, N.Y., and Scott McComb of Heartland Bank in Whitehall, Ohio.

Reflection and Ruminations

Dec 30, 2019
The oldest Millennials are pushing 40 and are well established in the financial services landscape, but with Gen Z—the elders of whom are college-aged—we have a digital native group with new expectations.

December 2019 - Online Training Newsletter

Dec 17, 2019
Happy Holidays from Community Banker University! It’s the end of the year when many employees are feverishly trying to complete their required annual training (and their administrators and supervisors are hounding them to do so!) In this month’s newsletter, we would like to offer a few reminders and helpful hints to help you efficiently finish out the calendar year and lay the groundwork for the year ahead.

Same Day ACH: A Viable Faster Payments Solution for Community Banks

Dec 16, 2019
In 2018, Same Day ACH volume reached 178 million transactions, an increase of 137 percent over the previous year. As a readily available faster payments option, and one that many community banks are familiar with, Same Day ACH serves as a practical and immediate option to support your bank.

Don't Give a Holiday Gift to Cyber Thieves

Dec 12, 2019
Between now and year-end, online merchants may earn as much as 30% of their 2019 revenue. But they aren’t the only ones hoping for a productive fourth quarter. So are cybercrooks.

Lessons Learned by Damon Moorer

Dec 12, 2019
TCM Bank's President & CEO, Damon Moorer, shares his insights on leadership in the work place based on key learning experiences in his career.

Simple ways to improve your financial awareness and grow

Dec 12, 2019
Jim Simon, TCM Bank's chief credit officer, writes that a few simple tips can help your improve your financial future.

Relationships That Stand the Test of Time

Dec 12, 2019
Community banks have gotten it right again. With the evolution of technology and the rise of a movement to all digital-banking, others within the industry have been chasing new channels with fervor trying to find the silver bullet that ensures their relevancy.