Robert Barba

Republic Bancorp's deal to buy the bank operations of H&R Block collapsed because of regulators' apparent concerns about the mixing of banking and tax-refund processing. The deal would have helped restore a business already bruised by conflicts with regulators.

Receiving Wide Coverage ...Yellen Picked as Next Fed Leader: President Obama will formally nominate Janet Yellen today to be the chairwoman of the Federal Reserve, the White House announced Tuesday. Yellen, current vice-chair of the Fed, was one of the front runners to replace Ben Bernanke, the current chairman, who is set to step down in January. She became the top candidate after Lawrence Summers withdrew his name from consideration last month. Although Yellen's nomination is expected to garner bipartisan support, she could encounter pushback from some powerful Republicans. Senator Bob Corker, R-Tenn., a senior member of the Senate banking committee, said in widely published statement that he voted against Yellen's 2010 vice-chairman nomination because of her "dovish views on monetary policy," he added,

First National Bank of New York is selling to Bridge Bancorp 18 months after its recapitalization because additional capital was elusive. For Bridge, the deal expands its reach closer to New York City. Similar scenarios will happen elsewhere.

Royal Bank of Scotland is said to be looking for a buyer for its 105-branch network in Chicago, but finding a buyer might be difficult because of market conditions and regulatory issues.

Bank buyers should run potential deals by regulators early to avoid "landmines" and speed applications, officials from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency say. Proper due diligence, succession planning and risk management are among the things they look for.

FirstBank in Lakewood, Colo., has announced plans to acquire a branch in Palm Desert, Calif., from El Paseo Bank.

The third quarter was marked by fewer but bigger deals. Higher prices could keep volume in check as sellers hold out for more. The fiscal showdown in Washington and related market swings could also complicate the balance of the year.

Two law firms that specialize in bank M&A — Stinson Morrison Hecker in Kansas City, Mo., and Leonard, Street and Deinhard, in Minneapolis — have agreed to merge.

Home Federal Bancorp was looking for ways to grow its earning assets as the benefits of FDIC loss shares from two failed-bank deals faded. Lacking good prospects, it decided to sell itself to Banner Corp. More banks could find themselves in the same boat.

The $4.24 billion-asset Banner said Tuesday it has agreed to buy Home Federal Bancorp (HOME) in Nampa, Idaho, for $197 million in cash and stock.

Nearly half of all M&A activity since 2011 has been divestitures, according to a new report from Deloitte. The data reflects banks trying to streamline their business in the new operating and regulatory environments.

Midland States Bancorp in Effingham, Ill., has agreed to buy Heartland Bank in St. Louis to lower its reliance on interest income, strengthen fee income and improve its chances at going public.

Wesley A. Brown, a Denver investment banker and member of the Alpine Rescue Team, is trained to save your bank — or you, if you get stuck in the mountains of Colorado. Recent floods there put his skills, and those of his teammates, to the test.

Bank CEOs John W. Allison, Ed Wehmer and David Zalman blended good-natured banter with insights on breaking the $10 billion-asset barrier, the danger of bank buyers paying too much and changing attitudes about M&A at an industry conference this week.

BB&T Capital Markets, a unit of the Winston-Salem, N.C., company, announced Tuesday that it had formed a corporate banking team in Chicago.

The acquisition-minded Heritage Financial and Washington Banking are said to be seeking targets to nearly double their size, motivated in part by the recent Umpqua-Sterling deal.

Umpqua Holdings' agreement to buy Sterling Financial is the latest in a series of deals this year to pair similarly sized banks, creating a new crop of midsize financial institutions.

The $5.8 billion-asset Chemical has begun a public offering of its common stock that seeks to raise $50 million, it announced Wednesday after the market closed. All of the shares are being offered by the company.

Receiving Wide Coverage ...Foiled Comeback: Former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer's hope of staging a political comeback was halted on Tuesday when he lost the Democratic nomination for city comptroller to Scott Stringer, the Manhattan Borough president. The one-time "sheriff of Wall Street" spent more money, but Stringer, as the New York Times describes it, painted Spitzer as a rich man who saw himself as above the law.

Richard Carrión's loss is Popular's gain. He would have stepped down as CEO of the Puerto Rico bank had he won the presidency of the International Olympic Committee, but he lost to Germany's Thomas Bach.