The Banker Next Door

What makes a great mobile banking app?

What makes a mobile banking app something that customers get excited about? This episode looks at five capabilities that a bank should consider 1) simple & seamless design, 2) real-time alerts, 3) predictive insights, 4) hyper-personalization, and 5) easy customer service. According to McKinsey, mobile banking leaders generate 51% more annual touchpoints and 2.3x as many customer interactions. The Bank of America mobile app is used as an example of an excellent app. This episode reviews a blog post from PCBB titled “The best banking apps increase customer touchpoints by 51%.” A link to the blog post is included below.
Link: The Best Banking Apps Increase Customer Touchpoints by 51%

Update on Private Credit as Tricolor executives are charged with fraud!

As Tricolor Holdings’ executives have been charged with ‘systemic fraud’, auto lending continues to deteriorate, and bank regulators are vowing to take a closer look at NDFI’s.  U.S. prosecutors in Manhattan unsealed indictments against founder and CEO Daniel Chu and Chief Operating Officer David Goodgame. The charges accuse the two executives of orchestrating a series of fraudulent schemes that allowed Tricolor Holdings to obtain billions of dollars from lenders by misrepresenting the value of its loan collateral. Bank auto loan delinquency increased to 2.9%, Credit Union auto loan delinquency increased to 2.5%. This episode reviewed a series of articles from CNBC and S&P Global (subscription required).   

A look back at 2025 and what is ahead for 2026

Happy New Year! What were the 10 top BND episodes for 2025? What was the most viewed interview for 2025? What was the most watched playlist for 2025? This episode reviews the best of BND for 2025 and looks at what is to come in 2026. Looking to expand Strategy Room in 2026. Live stream specials are coming. More interviews are coming. More special series are coming.
To all my followers and listeners, thank you so much for the support and for making 2025 a phenomenal year! On to 2026!    

2025 year in review

2025 was a wild year in banking! With all the changes that came this year, it begs the question are we at the precipice of a new era? This episode considers some of the biggest stories of 2025 and reviews major trends that affected the industry. Some of these trends include interest rates, margin pressure, regulatory shifts, M&A, strategic partnerships, digital transformation, payments innovation, cybersecurity, and data privacy. This episode reviewed two blog posts from PCBB titled “2025 in review Parts 1 and 2.” Links to both blog posts are included below.  
Link: 2025 in Review: Part 1 of 2 — An Evolving Market
Link: 2025 in Review: Part 2 of 2 — Technology & Payments

How the U.S. labor market changed in 2025

The U.S. labor market went on a very interesting ride in 2025. This episode reviews many of the main headlines which included more Americans find only part-time work, future of ‘low hire, low fire’ US labor stasis wobbles amid mixed signals, AI eliminating entry-level tech jobs, high unemployment for younger workers, labor force participation for youngest male U.S. workers plummets, soaring number of Americans face long-term joblessness, job growth concentration in health and hospitality, U.S. labor force participation drops to lowest level since 2022, and slowdown in U.S. job market could lower inflation. This episode reviewed three articles from S&P Global (subscription required).  

Final thoughts on bank M&A for 2025

Bank M&A activity cooled down in the fourth quarter of 2025. Still 2025 has generated 165 bank M&A transactions year to date. This is the largest number of bank M&A transactions since 2021. Not only that, total deal value, assets sold, deposits sold, and median deal value-to-tangible common equity were also the best since 2021. One of the interesting changes at year end is the seeming reluctance in a number of banks to engage in further M&A activity. This includes Wells Fargo, KeyCorp, PNC, Truist, and Huntington. Finally, we consider whether bank stocks are divorcing from bank fundamentals. This episode reviews a series of articles from the Business Journals (subscription required), Banking Dive, and S&P Global (subscription required).  

Update on commercial real estate at year end 2025

How is commercial real estate (CRE) performing at year end 2025? We take a look at CRE reserves, delinquencies, and how some banks are feeling about their CRE portfolio. Overall, reserves for loan loss allowances are holding steady. CRE loan delinquencies have decreased for 2 consecutive quarters. M&T Bank is feeling pretty good about having a little CRE growth in 2025, while PNC still sees a little contraction ahead. This episode reviewed three articles from S&P Global (subscription required).

The decline in bank branch closures hits a 14-year low!

The number of U.S. banks closing branches has hit a 14-year low according to research from S&P Global. The number of bank branches being closed is still outpacing new branches being opened, but the margin has been shrinking over the last 4 years. While many banks are right sizing their footprints, there are some banks that are opening new branches such as PNC and JPMorgan. This episode reviews an article from S&P Global (subscription required) titled “Branch closures hit 14-year low as banks slow closing, execute building sprees.”

Parables of the rich, a BND Christmas read along

On this day, when we celebrate the birth of the King of Kings, I would like to share three parables from the gospel of Luke about the plight of the rich. These include the rich fool, the rich man and Lazarus, and the rich official.
“For to us a child is born, and he will be called wonderful counselor, mighty God, everlasting father, prince of peace.” – Isaiah 9:6  

The medical industry's 'price-fixing' lawsuit that could change everything!

Over 20+ health care groups from all over the country have joined with a large number of plaintiffs in a lawsuit against every major health insurance company in America. The lawsuit alleges that the health insurance companies used software from a company named Claritev to create a price-fixing environment that allowed them to siphon billions of dollars from care providers and their patients. The stakes could not be higher for the health insurance companies as they could stand to lose billions and see major changes to how out-of-network care is priced and reimbursed for patients and private insurance.  This episode examines an article from The Business Journals (subscription required) titled “Philadelphia-area physician groups join massive suit alleging price fixing by ‘mafia enforcer’ for major insurers.”