A few financial technology-friendly companies were among the U.S. banks with the best-performing stocks in terms of month-to-date total return as of Jan. 31.

Major exchanged-traded U.S. banks overall had a median month-to-date return of 1.1%, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence's analysis of U.S. banks trading on the NYSE, the NYSE American and the Nasdaq. The S&P U.S. BMI Banks index returned 1.4% during the month of January as the S&P 500 posted a negative total return of 5.2%.

Best-performing bank stocks

Murray, Utah-based FinWise Bancorp, which partners with fintech companies, topped the list of banks with best-performing stocks with a month-to-date return of 27.5%. The second on the list is Wilmington, Del.-based fintech solutions provider The Bancorp Inc. whose shares had a return of 17.8% for the period.

Shares of First Northwest Bancorp offered a return of 10.3% month-to-date as of Jan. 31. The Port Angeles, Wash.-based company recently revealed a new fintech partnership with digital lending platform Splash Financial Inc. The stock of Philadelphia-based Republic First Bancorp Inc., a bank currently involved in a few shareholder activism campaigns, had a return of 15.6% for the period.

Buffalo, N.Y.-based M&T Bank Corp. and Bridgeport, Conn.-based People's United Financial Inc., whose merger is still awaiting Federal Reserve approval, were also part of the list of banks with best-performing stocks. Their shares offered returns of 10.3% and 9.8%, respectively, month-to-date.

Worst-performing bank stocks

On the other side of the coin, Wilmington, N.C.-based Live Oak Bancshares Inc.; La Jolla, Calif.-based Silvergate Capital Corp.; Dallas-based Triumph Bancorp Inc.; and Abilene, Texas-based First Financial Bankshares Inc. were among the U.S. banks with the worst-performing stocks. Their shares offered negative month-to-date returns of 32.6%, 27.3%, 26.5% and 7.6%, respectively. The companies were the four highest-priced banks on a price-to-estimated 2022 earnings basis.

Shares of just-merged Billings, Mont.-based First Interstate BancSystem Inc. and Sioux Falls, S.D.-based Great Western Bancorp Inc. had negative returns of 9.6% and 9.1%, respectively, for the period.

Two large banks were also on the list: San Francisco-based First Republic Bank and Santa Clara, Calif.-based SVB Financial Group, whose shares provided negative month-to-date returns of 15.8% and 13.9%, respectively.