Fourth quarter rally: Some suggestions on how to wrap up 2022

Dec 12, 2022
The word "rally" can be used for a number of purposes and in different contexts. For instance, it could mean a long-distance auto race over varying surfaces and involving stages and checkpoints.

FedNow and faster digital payments

Dec 12, 2022
We've been working toward a faster payments future for a decade now, and we're finally seeing the fruits of our labor: the launch of FedNow.

How ICBA’s Investments in Innovation Are Paying Off for Community Banks

Dec 2, 2022
Just shy of a year ago, ICBA announced its role as one of the general partners and investment committee members in a strategic investment fund designed to accelerate technology opportunities and adoption at community banks. Today, BankTech Ventures, has raised more than $115 million in committed capital in its first fund and has backed eight different companies working to provide community bank technology solutions.

Online Training Newsletter – November 2022

Nov 22, 2022
You may already be thinking about 2023 and your bank’s training plans for employees. If you haven’t, you will be very soon as the end of 2022 is approaching quickly. We encourage you to think about two things when planning your online course enrollments for 2023.

Six Steps to Your Bank’s Digital Payments Transformation

Nov 18, 2022
Digital transformation is the 2022 payments phrase of year. You can’t attend a meeting without hearing about its importance in the financial services landscape, and when you consider that nearly nine in ten Americans are now using some form of digital payments, you understand why it needs to be a top priority.

What’s Ahead for ThinkTECH? — With Jack Hartings and Wayne Miller

Nov 16, 2022
In late 2022, ICBA announced it was bringing the Accelerator and all innovation activities in house. In this episode, our guests reveal the reasons behind this move and give a glimpse of how the association will develop initiatives that help community banks flourish.

ICBA's Reimagined ThinkTECH Accelerator to Support Year-Round Programming

Oct 26, 2022
Bob Dylan once said, “There is nothing so stable as change,” and I have found that to be true, particularly as we look to embrace modern technologies and the companies that enable them.

Why Instant Payments Should Be on Your Digital Transformation Road Map

Oct 25, 2022
Even if you aren’t hearing the words “faster payments” or “instant payments” directly from your customers, trends and research show the demand is there – and rising. Recent Federal Reserve surveys reveal growing interest in faster payments

Three Financial Technology Trends Community Banks Should Consider for 2023

Oct 25, 2022
When I attended FinovateFall in September, I was struck by its palpable energy. Not only was it the most well attended Finovate to date with roughly 1,800 attendees and 64 participating companies, it was a widely collaborative conference, converting what had once felt like a competitive environment into one of enablement.

How Community Banks Can Leverage Strong Multifactor Authentication to Fend off Hackers

Oct 21, 2022
In the first half of 2022, there were 817 data breaches in the U.S., and combined with data leaks and data exposure, they impacted more than 53 million individuals. These are alarming numbers, but they could have been much worse without the use of some form of multifactor authentication.

How Federal Regulators Can Avoid Penalizing Community Banks for Economic Measures Taken During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Oct 19, 2022
The consequences of uncoordinated regulatory standards at the federal level are creating an artificial problem at the local level, potentially endangering many community banks’ ability to lend to local customers.

Online Training Newsletter – October 2022

Oct 18, 2022
October has been a busy month at ICBA Community Banker University, and we hope that your staff are benefiting from the additional courses we have added to the course catalog, not to mention several exciting new enhancements!

New Economic Stresses on Your Credit Analysis

Oct 5, 2022
With the producer price index down, can we say we are past peak inflation? Not really. Getting behind the reason for the decline of the overall PPI indicates inflation will be here for quite some time.

Welcome to the metaverse: The digital future of banking

Oct 5, 2022
We are at the very beginning of exploring the opportunities the metaverse may provide. And while the path forward may be long, financial institutions need to start assessing what those opportunities look like for them.

Price pullback prospects

Oct 3, 2022
Community banking is a cyclical industry, and its earnings have some correlation to market interest rates. Discounts are the story of the day, so let’s review how discount-priced bonds can be used strategically to improve portfolio performance.

Online Training Newsletter – September 2022

Sep 23, 2022
Big things are happening in the Community Banker University online training world and for you as a subscriber! Please read through this newsletter carefully and contact Community Banker University with any questions.

Three Take-Aways for Community Banks from the VenCent Summit

Sep 13, 2022
The Venture Center, ICBA’s leadership bankers, and our ThinkTECH Accelerator cohorts demonstrated the importance of community bank-fintech collaborations at last month’s VenCent Summit. It was an opportunity to showcase the evolution of our Accelerator alumni and reiterate the value of our ThinkTECH initiatives.

Zelle Fraud: How Community Banks Can Respond to This Cautionary Tale

Sep 8, 2022
In 2020, nearly 18 million Americans were defrauded via digital wallets and person-to-person (P2P) services, according to Javelin Strategy & Research. With numbers like that, P2P solutions like Zelle have come under fire, and issues are escalating.

Why Today’s Innovation Is Tomorrow’s Normal—With Tim Shangle, AVP, Innovation and Data Analytics, ChoiceOne Bank

Sep 1, 2022
In this episode, Tim (a 40 Under 40 winner) joins host Charles Potts to discuss his role as an innovator — leading implementation of an online platform that overhauled the bank’s customer experience.

ICBA’s 2022 National Community Bank Service Award winners

Sep 1, 2022
It’s no secret that community banks have plenty of social capital due to their charitable work and community involvement. But they’re not in it for the PR. What sets them apart is that community banks tailor their giving to local needs.