Daily Brief · July 16, 2026
Bank earnings dominate a day of M&A and capital deployment
Daily brief covers bank M&A, major Q2 earnings, BayFirst restatement and a capital-rule mortgage issue.
7 stories2-minute read
Bank M&A
First Hawaiian agreed to acquire TriCo; First Bank agreed to buy Carolina Bank & Trust
First Hawaiian's all-stock $2 billion TriCo Bancshares deal would add 68 California branches and $8.4 billion of deposits, while TriCo also approved a $2.5 million CEO transaction bonus payable at merger closing. First Bank's $166 million Carolina Bank & Trust deal would add 14 branches to its 113-location footprint, push it above $13 billion in assets, and is expected to close in the first quarter of 2027.
Sources: American Banker, SEC 8-K, Banking Dive
Large-bank earnings and capital deployment
Morgan Stanley reported Q2 earnings with a 14.8% CET1 ratio and a 300 bp cushion above its minimum
Second-quarter net revenues were $21.3 billion, diluted EPS was $3.46, and net income applicable to Morgan Stanley was $5.6 billion. American Banker reported the 14.8% Common Equity Tier 1 ratio was 300 basis points above the minimum regulatory requirement, and CEO Ted Pick said the bank is open to bolt-on acquisitions while still preferring organic growth.
Sources: SEC 8-K, American Banker
Bank of America paired higher Q2 profit with positive operating leverage and AI productivity commentary
Bank of America reported second-quarter net income of $9.1 billion, or $1.21 per diluted share. American Banker reported a fifth straight quarter of positive operating leverage and said CEO Brian Moynihan cited more than 300 approved AI use cases that management said are improving productivity, consistency and client service.
Sources: SEC 8-K, American Banker
Regional-bank earnings updates
M&T Bank lifted its loan target after record quarterly earnings
M&T Bank Corporation reported net income of $818 million, or $5.32 diluted EPS. American Banker reported that the bank increased its full-year lending target by $1 billion and now projects year-end loans of $141 billion to $143 billion, with management citing momentum in loan activity and improved deposit momentum.
Sources: SEC 8-K, American Banker
Home BancShares and Plumas Bancorp added record Q2 earnings reports
Home BancShares reported second-quarter 2026 revenue of $119.3 million and net income of $295.1 million, citing purchase-accounting accretion and the Mountain Commerce Bancorp acquisition. Plumas Bancorp reported record second-quarter earnings of $9.9 million, or $1.43 per share, for the three months ended June 30, with increases in net interest income and returns.
Source: SEC 8-K
Risk and regulatory read-throughs
BayFirst will restate interim results after asset-resolution charges
BayFirst will restate 2024-2026 interim results and quantified a $37.0 million asset resolution plan impact. The filing also reported a $1.5 million impairment and a $1.6 million USDA premium write-down.
Source: SEC 8-K
Second-lien mortgage risk gap arises when another institution holds the borrower’s junior lien
American Banker reported that the standards, as written, fail to account for added borrower risk when a second mortgage sits at another institution. The article said the design creates incentives to move second liens off bank balance sheets and that fixing the problem would significantly reduce the rule's benefit to banks.
Source: American Banker