Latest banking news, Aug. 26, 2022

Visa's tokens pass cards in circulation

A Visa credit card is arranged for a photograph in Tiskilwa, Illinois, on Sept. 18, 2018.

Daniel Acker/Bloomberg

Visa Token Service passed the 4 billion issuance milestone this week, doubling its count in one year and passing the number of plastic Visa cards in circulation. The token service was launched in 2014 as a way to accommodate an expected increase in mobile payments. The tokens replace the traditional card number with a "tokenized" number that's designed to protect the original card number from theft in a digital environment. Visa reports these tokens have led to a 28% reduction in fraud rates and a 3% boost in approval rates since the program was launched. Visa also reports e-commerce payments have expanded 50% over the past two years. — John Adams

Block sued over Cash App breach

Jin Lee

A 2021 Cash App breach that affected more than 8 million consumers has resulted in a class action against Block. The suit claims Block, formerly known as Square, caused customer information to be accessed and fraudulently misused after the company did not go public with the breach for four months. Block told the Securities and Exchange Commission that a former employee had accessed reports that included customer information such as full names and brokerage account numbers for people that used Cash App for investing. Other data such as portfolio holdings and stock trading information was also downloaded. Block did not provide comment by deadline. — John Adams

TowneBank in Virginia names Foster its next CEO

executives handing off the baton; CEO succession planning

Andrey Popov/Andrey Popov - stock.adobe.com

TowneBank in Suffolk, Virginia, said William Foster III, president of the bank's markets in central Virginia and North Carolina, would succeed J. Morgan Davis when Davis steps down as CEO at the end of the year. Foster joined the $16.9 billion-asset TowneBank in 2004 as a regional president. Davis, who plans to retire on March 31, 2023, after assisting with the transition process, will continue to serve on the company's board and as an executive consultant focused on acquisitions and special projects. TowneBank this month said it had agreed to acquire Farmers Bankshares in Windsor, Virginia, for $56 million in stock. The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2023. — Jim Dobbs

BofA adds 2,600 military veterans to workforce

Michael Short/Bloomberg

Bank of America said it hired 2,600 military veterans this year on top of a five-year goal to add 10,000. The additions mean a 24% increase in representation of veterans at the bank, according to a memo to staff Wednesday seen by Bloomberg News. The number of veterans at the company is now more than 15% of all U.S. external hires as of July 2022, according to the announcement. "We continue to actively focus on recruiting and retaining veterans who bring leadership and skills that strengthen our company," the Charlotte, North Carolina-based bank said in the memo. Bank of America's total headcount was 209,824 as of the second quarter, down from 211,608 a year ago, according to filings. — Katherine Doherty, Bloomberg News

U.K. challenger bank Zopa reaches £2 billion in deposits

Hollie Adams/Bloomberg

Zopa Group Ltd. has reached £2 billion ($2.37 billion) in deposits, two years after it started offering banking services. The London-headquartered firm, which started as a peer-to-peer lender before it relaunched as a bank in 2020, said on Thursday deposits had more than doubled from £968 million in December. Zopa is among the U.K.'s challenger banks vying to attract customers from the long-established big five lenders. Starling Bank, which launched eight years ago, grew its deposits 55% to £9 billion in the year through March. Monzo Bank Ltd. had £4.4 billion in deposits by February, up about 40% in a year, while Atom Bank had grown to £3.5 billion by July. Zopa said it had 730,000 total customers by the end of July. — Aisha S Gani, Bloomberg News

Former White House press secretary joins Truist

Truist Financial in Charlotte, North Carolina, hired Scott Stanzel as an executive vice president and chief communications officer. Stanzel held a similar position at Capital One and previously serving as deputy White House press secretary during the George W. Bush administration. Stanzel will report to Ellen Fitzsimmons, Truist's chief legal officer and head of public affairs. Stanzel will help the bank "more constructively and impactfully engage with our numerous stakeholders," Fitzsimmons said in a press release. — Jordan Stutts

MVB Financial names successor to board chairman

MVB Financial, the holding company for MVB Bank in Fairmont, West Virginia, named W. Marston Becker the next chairman of its board of directors. MVB Financial, the parent of the $2.9 billion-asset MVB Bank, said Becker will succeed David B. Alvarez when Alvarez retires. "Marty's leadership and experience have proven to be a great asset to the MVB board of directors as MVB continues to scale and execute our MVB-F1: Success Loves Speed strategic plan," Larry F. Mazza, chief executive of MVB Financial, said in a press release Thursday. Becker has been a member of the board since November 2020. —Frank Gargano

Southern First promotes chief banking officer Hurst to president

Cal Hurst.

Southern First Bancshares in Greenville, South Carolina, named Cal Hurst president of the company. Hurst, who has more than 16 years of industry experience, had been South First's chief banking officer since 2019. He contributed to the $3.3 billion-asset company's strategic planning and oversaw its retail banking, deposit operations and marketing divisions. "Cal's charismatic leadership has been integral to our continued growth and strong company culture. This promotion is in recognition of his tremendous talents and deep commitment to our mission of impacting lives. I look forward to building on our accomplishments with Cal's talents in this new role," Art Seaver, the company's CEO, said in a press release. — Jim Dobbs