Watching the Fed: After a jump in rates over the last two years, banks are preparing for cuts to trigger more activity

In March of 2022, the U.S. Federal Reserve began bumping up its benchmark interest rate, which had hovered around zero for much of the previous 13 years. For Central Massachusetts banks, that was a lot of change to deal with. Martin Connors, president and CEO of Fitchburg- based Rollstone Bank& Trust, said the rapid rate hikes meant the bank had to pay more to its savings…