Credit cleanup, M&A and digital-asset policy dominate the week

BayFirst restatements and First Guaranty limits put credit cleanup in earnings. BayFirst will restate 2024-2026 interim results after a $37.0 million asset-resolution-plan impact, and its second-quarter report showed a $32.7 million loss and a $29 million credit-loss provision tied to legacy SBA 7(a) lending. Management is also unwinding the small-dollar SBA strategy by targeting larger commercial customers, while First Guaranty Bank agreed to an FDIC and Louisiana consent order that restricts additional credit to certain classified borrowers and leaves it needing to improve Tier 1 leverage capital.

Bank of America and Nubank add cross-border growth markers. Bank of America agreed to buy an initial 26.5% stake in Jio Credit for about $1.9 billion, with warrants that can raise ownership to 49.9% subject to regulatory approval; Jio Credit oversaw about $3.2 billion of assets at the end of June. The bank also announced a $250 billion U.S. infrastructure commitment covering lending, banking, investing and advisory work, while Nubank’s quarterly income hit $1 billion for the first time as it prepares to launch a bank in the U.S.

Goldman Sachs agreed to buy Neos for ETF scale. The cash-and-equity acquisition is valued at up to $2.25 billion and is expected to close in the first quarter of 2027. Neos brings a fast-growing options-based income exchange-traded-fund platform, and Goldman’s ETF assets are expected to rise to about $130 billion.

HBT agreed to buy Tri-County near the $10 billion line. The Illinois cash-and-stock deal values Tri-County Financial Group at $204.6 million, or 131% of tangible book value, and is expected to close in the first quarter of 2027. If completed, HBT Financial’s assets would rise to about $8.3 billion, moving the company closer to the $10 billion-asset threshold.

Fed collateral operations ease as CFPB data-sharing fees enter review. The Federal Reserve updated the Borrower in Custody program as part of discount-window modernization, adding easier forms, online collateral-schedule uploads and streamlined compliance and inspection requirements. The CFPB submitted its open-banking proposal to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs in early August; the draft may allow banks to charge consumer-data-access fees above a threshold, and litigation is expected from banks or fintechs depending on the final rule.

OCC charter actions split digital-asset and fintech entry paths. The OCC granted conditional approval for World Liberty Financial to establish World Liberty Trust Company as a national trust bank for USD1 stablecoin issuance, custody and reserve management, with final launch still dependent on remaining approvals. The agency denied Bunq’s de novo U.S. bank charter application after citing supervisory and compliance concerns, and Banking Dive reported that the OCC viewed the proposed U.S. operations as inadequately capitalized with an unrealistic path to profit.

Custodia and CLARITY keep digital-asset access unresolved. Custodia filed a Supreme Court petition on July 10 seeking review of rulings that upheld the Kansas City Fed’s denial of a master account for Federal Reserve payment-system access. Senate action on the CLARITY Act was delayed until after the August recess, and bank groups said unchanged stablecoin yield language could siphon deposits from banks that fund local lending.