Citizens Bank

Citizens Bank, one of the largest regional banks in the country, was hobbled for hours yesterday by a major computer outage that disrupted everything from online banking to teller operations to automated teller machines in Massachusetts and other states. Citizens Bank blamed the outage, which began early yesterday morning, on a ‘‘technical glitch," but offered few details. Many customers couldn't withdraw money from ATMS, access accounts online, or make deposits at branches.

The Business and Industry Association of New Hampshire has elected four new members to its board of directors. They are: Joseph Carelli, the president of Citizens Bank in New Hampshire and Vermont; Pamela Hall, the president of Normandeau Associates; Larry Magor, managing director of the Omni Mount Washington Resort; and David Worthen, president of Worthen Industries, Inc. The association is New Hampshire's statewide chamber of commerce and...

Citizens Bank, the state's second-largest retail bank, plans to double the monthly fee for one of its most popular checking accounts next month. The Providence-based regional bank plans to increase the monthly charge for its Green Checking account from $4.99 to $9.99. Customers can avoid the fee by maintaining a balance of $1,500 or making five qualifying payments each month. The move comes as many banks are looking for new ways to increase revenue to offset the cost of new regulations, the sluggish economy, and low interest rates.

Is Citizens Bank taking advantage of its customers' math errors? A class action suit filed in federal court in Illinois last week accuses Providence-based Citizens Bank of keeping any extra funds when customers' accidentally undercount the amount of money they deposit. For instance, the suit said Todd L. Bowers Inc., a chiropractic center in Downers Grove, Ill., deposited $1,475.07 in checks and cash into its Citizens account in November 2010, but made an error and listed only $1,448.57.

Citizens Bank, the state's second-largest retail bank, plans to boost some of its checking account fees and make other key changes next month. The Providence-based regional bank plans to double the monthly charge for its popular Green Checking account from $4.99 to $9.99 on April 23. Customers can avoid the fee by maintaining a balance of at least $1,500 or making five qualifying transactions, such as using a debit card, each month. The bank also plans to boost the monthly fee for its personal checking with interest account by $2 to $11.99 next month.

Boston police said they are searching for the man who robbed the Citizens Bank in Downtown Crossing yesterday morning. Police were notified at 11:42 a.m. that a man, wearing a blue baseball cap, entered the bank at 40 Summer St. and passed a note to the teller, said Officer James Kenneally, a spokesman for the Boston Police. According to information on the department’s Twitter account, the suspect is about 5 feet, 9 inches tall and has a thin build. The suspect did not show a weapon and no one was injured, said Kenneally.

The Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc, the British parent of Providence-based Citizens Bank, announced plans today to cut 4,800 jobs, citing volatile markets and new regulations in the United Kingdom. But RBS spokesman Michael Strachan said the restructing won't have any direct impact on Citizens, the second largest retail bank in Massachusetts. And since RBS has only limited other operations in the state, the layoffs would likely affect few, if any, local workers. The company said the bulk of the cuts, affecting 3,500 workers will come in its...

TD Bank Group, already one of the biggest banks on the East Coast, plans to keep growing, the bank's top executive said Thursday in Boston. Chief executive Ed Clark told local business leaders that the Canadian bank opened 37 US branches in 2011 and plans to open a similar number this year, despite the sluggish economic recovery. "TD Bank has huge faith in America," said Clark, addressing the Boston College Chief Executives' Club luncheon in Boston, according to a draft of his remarks.

More than a year after Bank of America Corp. rolled out a new menu of checking accounts in Massachusetts and two other states, the bank is still tinkering with the details. The bank designed the pilot program, also launched in Arizona and Georgia, to help test new ways to charge checking account customers as it tries to cut overhead costs, increase revenue, and entice existing customers to do more business with the bank. The bank previously said it planned to roll out the accounts to customers nationwide by the end of this year, but it now says it hasn't settled on the...

One of the best ways to get foreign currency when you're abroad is from an ATM. The transaction is instantaneous, the exchange rate is competitive, you have a record of all of your transactions, and the fees, though sometimes substantial, are deducted automatically from your account. But what if the automatic teller machine is out of order? Or the tiny, picturesque seaside village has a couple of local banks but no ATMs? Or you forget your personal identification number or -- worst of all -- lose your card?

The FBI is searching for a woman who allegedly robbed five banks in Boston since mid-April, including three last Friday, officials said. Special Agent Greg Comcowich, a spokesman for the city's FBI unit, said surveillance tapes from the banks showed a woman about 5 feet 3 inches tall and about 135 pounds allegedly slipping a note demanding cash from five different banks. He declined to comment on whether the notes threatened the bank tellers with a weapon. A Sovereign Bank on Boylston Street was robbed on April 13 and another...

TD Bank Group, already one of the biggest banks on the East Coast, plans to keep growing, the bank's top executive said Thursday in Boston. Chief executive Ed Clark told local business leaders that the Canadian bank opened 37 US branches in 2011 and plans to open a similar number this year, despite the sluggish economic recovery. "TD Bank has huge faith in America," said Clark, addressing the Boston College Chief Executives' Club luncheon in Boston, according to a draft of his remarks.

Lawyers for the Charles Street African Methodist Episcopal Church are scheduled to appear in federal bankruptcy court in Boston Thursday to seek permission to continue paying wages to employees and file other motions related to its operations. The church on Tuesday night filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection to prevent its lenders at OneUnited Bank from foreclosing on a $1.1 million loan and auctioning off the Roxbury church this week. About 250 members of the congregation voted to move forward with the bankruptcy filing in a...

Citizens Bank, the state's second-largest retail bank, plans to boost some of its checking account fees and make other key changes next month. The Providence-based regional bank plans to double the monthly charge for its popular Green Checking account from $4.99 to $9.99 on April 23. Customers can avoid the fee by maintaining a balance of at least $1,500 or making five qualifying transactions, such as using a debit card, each month. The bank also plans to boost the monthly fee for its personal checking with interest account by $2 to $11.99 next month.

Citizens Bank, the state's second-largest retail bank, plans to double the monthly fee for one of its most popular checking accounts next month. The Providence-based regional bank plans to increase the monthly charge for its Green Checking account from $4.99 to $9.99. Customers can avoid the fee by maintaining a balance of $1,500 or making five qualifying payments each month. The move comes as many banks are looking for new ways to increase revenue to offset the cost of new regulations, the sluggish economy, and low interest rates.

More than a year after Bank of America Corp. rolled out a new menu of checking accounts in Massachusetts and two other states, the bank is still tinkering with the details. The bank designed the pilot program, also launched in Arizona and Georgia, to help test new ways to charge checking account customers as it tries to cut overhead costs, increase revenue, and entice existing customers to do more business with the bank. The bank previously said it planned to roll out the accounts to customers nationwide by the end of this year, but it now says it hasn't settled on the...

Is Citizens Bank taking advantage of its customers' math errors? A class action suit filed in federal court in Illinois last week accuses Providence-based Citizens Bank of keeping any extra funds when customers' accidentally undercount the amount of money they deposit. For instance, the suit said Todd L. Bowers Inc., a chiropractic center in Downers Grove, Ill., deposited $1,475.07 in checks and cash into its Citizens account in November 2010, but made an error and listed only $1,448.57.

Many bank customers have long felt nickeled-and-dimed by fees imposed by financial institutions. But now some banks are demanding much bigger denominations. The region's largest banks are charging consumers as much as $50 a month if they do not maintain minimum balances or meet other requirements for certain high-end checking and savings accounts. Citizens Bank charges customers $50 a month when the balance in a top-end money market account slips below $1,000. Sovereign Bank imposes fees of up to $30 a month, and Bank of America and TD Bank each charge $25 a month whenever...