Jay Rickey

This first ran in The First Draft — our insiders-only newsletter focused on the insights, headlines and information you need to do more business. Subscribe here to get it first. The first failure of an FDIC-insured bank in 2026 surfaced quietly late Friday with little explanation. Illinois regulators seized Metropolitan Capital Bank & Trust, which had $261M in assets, and appointed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. as receiver.

Nonfarm payroll employment rose by 275,000 jobs in February, higher than consensus estimates and above the average monthly gain of 230,000 jobs over the previous 12 months, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday. The unemployment rate rose by 0.2 percentage points to 3.9%. December and January payroll employment numbers were revised down by a combined 167,000 jobs. Healthcare had the most job gains in February, adding 67,000 positions.

Nonfarm payroll employment rose by 353,000 jobs in January, nearly double consensus estimates, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday. The unemployment rate remains at 3.7%. The sector with the most jobs gained in January was professional and business services, which added 74,000 jobs after averaging a monthly increase of 14,000 jobs in 2023. The healthcare industry, which averaged a monthly increase of 58,000 jobs per month for the year, added another 70,000 jobs in January.