Strong fee income growth and solid credit quality helped offset weak demand for credit as the San Francisco-based bank reported a 20% boost to earnings per share from a year ago.

After passing the Federal Reserve's stress tests with high marks, large banks announced dividend increases. In some cases, they also said the Fed had conceded that certain prior calculations needed to be revised.

It's early, but financial institutions are getting ready to issue the digital asset.

Analysts are predicting stronger results this year after a disappointing outcome in 2024.

In 2021, banks pledged to wind down their support for oil and gas. Last year they made a $162 billion U-turn, according to a new report from a coalition of advocacy groups.

The JPMorgan Chase CEO also sounded off on regulatory requirements, expressing optimism that capital rules will be scaled back.

Regulators' decision to lift a seven-year-old cap on the size of the megabank's balance sheet will produce benefits over the long haul, but it won't result in any sudden gains, according to CFO Michael Santomassimo.

The San Francisco-based bank was long hamstrung by a regulatory order that kept it under $1.95 trillion of assets. Now Wells can hit the gas on business lines it had kept idle.

The transaction comes as the megabank is determined to simplify its operating model and shed units that have slower growth prospects or aren't core to its business.

The megabank, which has spent years trying to improve its regulatory compliance, now has just one consent order remaining. And observers expect that Wells' historic asset cap will be lifted soon.