Influence of bank probed by newspaper (8)
I believe the answer is:
leverage
'influence' is the definition.
(thesaurus)
'bank probed by newspaper' is the wordplay.
'bank' becomes 'levee' (I've seen this before).
'probed by' indicates putting letters inside (I've seen this in other clues).
'newspaper' becomes 'rag' (rag is a kind of newspaper).
'levee' enclosing 'rag' is 'LEVERAGE'.
'of' is the link.
(Other definitions for leverage that I've seen before include "Economic clout" , "Purchase" , "Strategic advantage; large Eve (anag.)" , "Power to act effectively" , "financial advantage" .)