* Lincoln, Neb.-based Community Hope FCU has agreed to merge with Papillion, Neb.-based Cobalt CU. Upon closing, Community Hope CEO Mark Koller plans to retire from his position.
* JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup plan on hiring more advisers to manage funds for Japanese firms looking at expanding overseas. JPMorgan is expected to boost its workforce focusing on corporate Japanese clients by 20% this year, while Citi is looking at a 10% increase on Japan-focused staff.
* Citigroup informed House Financial Services Committee Chairwoman Maxine Waters, D.-Calif., that it raised its minimum hourly wage to $15, Bloomberg News reports. Information on the raise, which started June 1, was provided to Waters after she asked CEO Michael Corbat if he would consider boosting the minimum pay to $20.
* Lobbyists for other cryptocurrencies argue that any strict rules that would apply to Facebook's Libra should not negatively impact older digital currencies like Bitcoin, Bloomberg News reports. Facebook has faced intensifying scrutiny over its cryptocurrency project, with lawmakers wary of Libra's potential massive international reach.
* A U.S. federal appeals court has revived lawsuits accusing a group of companies that include Goldman Sachs Group and JPMorgan of colluding and curtailing aluminum supply to inflate prices, Reuters reports. The conspiracy allegedly led to delays in order processing, higher storage costs and an increase in production costs.
* The Massachusetts Securities Division of the Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth fined Wells Fargo Clearing Services for $450,000. Wells Fargo allegedly allowed multiple unregistered agents and supervisors to work with in-state investors, and that lapses in registration happened despite the division informing the company at least 159 times that certain supervisors are required to register.
* The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued a consent order to Irving, Texas-based Maxitransfers for violating the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010. The remittance transfer services provider allegedly told its customers that it would not be liable for any mistakes made by its third-party payment agents. The Remittance Transfer Rule makes Maxitransfers responsible for the acts of the agent when the agent acts for the provider.
* Chicago, Ill.-based insurtech startup Kin Insurance has raised $47 million in funding for its launch of Florida home insurance carrier, Kin Interinsurance Network.
* Insurance brokers Hub International and Brown & Brown have snagged former Nationwide agencies after it announced in 2018 plans to end its exclusive arrangement for about 1,700 agents and have all of its policy sales and servicing handled by independent brokers by 2020.
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