BMO hired former CEO of Citi Private Bank Halé Behzadi to accelerate the bank's growth strategy in California; Pennsylvania's Linkbancorp received regulatory approval to sell its New Jersey operations to a credit union; Dream First Bank announced plans to gain branches throughout Oklahoma; and more in this week's banking news roundup.

The midyear fee hike was necessary to reverse a revenue shortfall in the agency's 7(a) program, according to Administrator Kelly Loeffler.

The San Francisco bank announced Monday that it has shed its fifth regulatory order this year — this one related to loss mitigation practices in its home lending business.

A new Office of External Relations and Strategic Partnerships will continue the work of helping banks develop affordable credit for consumers lacking a credit score using untraditional methods of determining creditworthiness, the agency's acting head said.

The Connecticut bank disclosed that Nasdaq waived a shareholder approval requirement so it could urgently raise more than $50 million. Patriot also said its finance chief would step down.

The Trump administration's plans for student loans could open the door for banks to grab market share as borrowers seek alternatives.

The North Carolina House of Representatives this week passed a measure that would allow credit unions to expand into geographic areas with few, if any, bank branches. Banks say such a change could open the door for credit unions to expand far beyond their limited missions.

The digital bank announced upgrades to its online and mobile platforms that let users see financial information from multiple accounts on one dashboard.

The two financial institutions issued Avit tokens on the Ethereum mainnet, marking a first in the U.S.

The Mississippi lender said regulators have signed off sooner than expected on its $103.6 million acquisition of First Chatham Bank. The bank's CEO and deal advisers said the speedy approval bodes well for future M&A.