Main Street Matters Blog

The current worker shortage is creating real economic impacts across all industries. According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, there are 3.4 million fewer Americans working today compared to February of 2020.

As the leading providers of agricultural loans, community banks make up 80 percent of all financing to agriculture, and opportunities exist to extend that support.

Relationship banking has entered a new, digital era as confirmed by recent research from Cornerstone Advisors that concluded, “There is a human element to mobile banking.” In fact, this Cornerstone study revealed that 60 percent of Gen Z and almost two-thirds of Millennials expect to connect with customer support directly from their mobile banking app.

While the effects of COVID slowed consumer credit card spending, the first half of 2022 has pointed to a return to pre-pandemic behaviors. In fact, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York reported that in the first quarter of 2022 credit card balances have risen $71 billion higher than the same period in 2021.

It comes as no surprise that cybersecurity tops community bankers’ list of risk concerns. In fact, cybersecurity ranks higher than government regulation, the cost and availability of labor, and inflation, as a chief threat for 2022, according to a Conference of State Bank Supervisors survey.

Everyone, including big tech and social media players, want a super app. That’s according to a 2022 Accenture Banking report, which underscores that the threat is real.

When a shiny new object comes along like “buy now, pay later,” or BNPL, merchants will gladly pay significantly higher transaction fees than they do for credit cards. But this recent surge in BNPL adoption by merchants deflates their arguments that interchange—the fees for accepting card payments—harms them.

Engaging community bankers to think about innovation in new ways continues to be my driving force, but I’m not doing it alone. This year I’m bringing along ICBA ThinkTECH Accelerator alumni.

When it comes to payments, the generational divide has been shrinking. While Gen Z and Millennials still lead the way in digital payments adoption, Baby Boomers and Seniors (over 76) are increasing their digital payments prowess.

While Juneteenth is the youngest U.S. federal holiday after it became formally recognized in a law enacted last year, it has decades of significance—with June 19, 1865, recognized as the end of slavery in the United States.