Robert Barba is the technology editor of American Banker. Robert previously served as deputy editor of American Banker's dealmaking and strategy section. He joined American Banker in late 2007 as a community banking reporter, just in time for the financial crisis. Robert played a lead role in covering community banks' struggle for survival in the years following the downturn. Robert has appeared on Fox Business to discuss bank failures and the Treasury Department's Troubled Asset Relief Program. Prior to joining American Banker, Robert was a general business reporter at Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers in Stuart, Fla. He began his career as a business desk intern at The Denver Post and Boulder Daily Camera. Robert is based in New York.
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AmericanWest in Spokane, Wash., announced Thursday it plans to acquire the $221 million-asset Inland Community Bank for $23.7 million, or 95% of its book value. It is AmericanWest's third acquisition in California in a year.
July 19 -
Second-quarter results were predictably solid, but the earnings call was anything but dull as the CEO blasted the city of Los Angeles and its motives.
July 18 -
The company is opening a loan production office in Wisconsin to focus on commercial loans. The reason? More than 300 banks are fighting for loans in Chicago, leading the local bank to look elsewhere for new business.
July 17 -
Pulaski Bank has filed a lawsuit against three former employees over mortgage data that the Creve Couer, Mo., bank claims the employees took and are using to give their new employer a leg up.
July 16 -
Solera National Bank is looking to double its loan portfolio in the next year now that it is no longer operating under a consent order from the OCC.
July 12 -
A fraud case that contributed to the recent failure of Montgomery Bank in Georgia could lead to more regulatory scrutiny when community banks look for outside investors.
July 12 -
Vintage Bancorp, in Leon, Kan., on Wednesday canceled its deal for CornerBank, in Winfield, Kan.
July 11 -
Taylor Capital Group (TAYC) in Chicago is registering 20.6 million shares of its stock to make it easier for certain shareholders to sell the securities.
July 10 -
The Georgia Department of Banking and Finance closed Montgomery Bank & Trust in Ailey on Friday. Ameris Bank in Moultrie, Ga., agreed to assume all of the bank's $164.4 million in deposits.
July 6 -
Preferred Bank (PFBC) in Los Angeles is set to post its first loss since the fourth quarter of 2010 following unexpected write-downs on two loans.
July 6 -
The Federal Reserve Board terminated written agreements with bank companies in Minnesota and Oregon and entered into a new one with a Maryland company.
July 5 -
Still holding stakes in some 325 banks, the Treasury is expected to accept bigger discounts as it works to unwind the bailout-era program.
July 3 -
Though bank deals have risen in Texas because of its robust economy and in California because of abundant capital, small Kansas banks are partnering because they worry about their viability as little guys.
July 2 -
Glacier Bancorp (GBCI) in Kalispell, Mont., has appointed former state banking commissioner Annie M. Goodwin to its board of directors.
June 29 -
A little more than a year after saving a struggling Kansas thrift, the owners of a Chicago mortgage firm have been awarded two large grants to relocate the thrift's headquarters to the Windy City and open a large loan production office there.
June 28 -
The Treasury Department has sent letters to 200 remaining Tarp banks indicating that the agency may auction its stakes as parts of pools this fall. While the move removes the government from the banks, it presents new challenges, particularly for recapitalizations.
June 26 -
Capitol Bancorp in Lansing, Mich., is asking its debt holders to convert their interests to equity in what appears to be a last-ditch bid to avoid bankruptcy.
June 25 -
A month after calling off a planned public offering, Customers Bancorp in Pennsylvania, led by former Sovereign CEO Jay Sidhu, will bring in $100 million in capital by acquiring Acacia Federal Savings.
June 22 -
Customers Bancorp, the Wyomissing, Pa., banking comany led by veteran banker Jay Sidhu, is giving up nearly 20% of its ownership to venture into the greater Washington, D.C., market.
June 21 -
Schiff Hardin in Charlotte, N.C., just created Schiff Hardin Strategic Advisers to help banks distance themselves from past problems and prevent them from reoccurring. The firm is led by two former Wachovia executives.
June 20
