Fifth Third Bancorp announced it has entered into a definitive merger agreement to acquire Comerica for $10.9 billion in an all-stock deal. The tie-up of regional banks will create the ninth largest bank in the U.S., with approximately $288 billion in assets, according to the companies. The transaction, which still needs the approval of shareholders from both companies, is expected to close toward the end of the first quarter of 2026.
United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) announced a 10-year, nearly $115 million partnership with the NBA’s Phoenix Suns and the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury for the naming rights to the downtown arena in Arizona’s largest city. The sports and entertainment venue, which opened in 1992 and seats more than 17,000 for basketball games, will now be called the Mortgage Matchup Center. Named after a consumer-facing UWM brand, the partnership also establishes Mortgage Matchup as the official mortgage partner of the Suns, the Mercury and the Valley Suns, the G League affiliate of the NBA squad.
Better announced the launch of a bank statement home equity line of credit (HELOC) program aimed at self-employed borrowers who do not meet traditional W-2 underwriting criteria. The platform uses artificial intelligence to analyze income and profit-and-loss trends, and lets borrowers use 12 or 24 months of personal and/or business bank statements for income verification. The program does not require a physical appraisal and streamlines the title insurance process for loan amounts up to $400,000, according to the company.
Mortgage Research Center LLC, the parent company of Veterans United Home Loans, announced the launch of full-service lender First Residential Independent Mortgage. Headquartered in Springfield, Mo., the new company replaces the Paddio lending brand, with all current employees transitioning to the new entity. First Residential Independent Mortgage also plans to hire new loan officers and will specialize in conventional loans, Federal Housing Administration loans and downpayment assistance loan products.
Annaly Capital Management Inc. and PennyMac Financial Services Inc. — stylized Pennymac for short — announced they have entered into a subservicing agreement and a master purchase agreement, whereby Annaly has agreed to purchase a portfolio of mortgage servicing rights (MSR) from Pennymac, and Pennymac will handle all servicing and recapture activities for the MSR sold to Annaly.
Mortgage software company LoanLogics announced the launch of LoanBeam NQM, a product that automates bank statement analysis for non-qualified mortgage (non-QM) loans. The platform combines AI-powered document processing and human verification, aiming to lower per-loan processing costs and provide more accurate data validation and audit trails.
NotaryCam, a Stewart-owned provider of remote online notarization and identity verification and authentication technology, announced the full compatibility of its eClose360 platform with the newly published SMART Doc V3 standard from the Mortgage Industry Standards Maintenance Organization (MISMO) for electronic HELOCs. The integration is designed to enhance lender efficiency with automated document handling, secure e-note management and real-time remote notarization.
Sagent announced the launch of Dara Invoice, a platform designed to streamline the invoice process for mortgages in default. The unified platform aims to eliminate human errors during the mortgage servicing process by replacing manual processes with automated tools for document management, auditing and partner communication.
