Robert Barba

Capitol Bancorp Ltd. must really want to keep its board staggered.

The FDIC has served as the receiver on 90 banks so far this year, well below analysts' expectations. Still, observers say another 200 banks are at risk of failure over the next two years.

Are disgruntled shareholders trying to seize control of the board Capitol Bancorp Ltd. or at least sack all the directors in one fell swoop?

The heir to the Hyatt hotel fortune has ties to the industry, but the family's last banking venture didn't end so well.

Republic Bancorp in Louisville, Ky., announced on Friday that it would soon stop making refund-anticipation loans as part of a settlement with the FDIC. Now it needs to find revenue to replace the $24.5 million the business has made this year.

Republic Bancorp in Kentucky said in a regulatory filing Friday that it has settled its months-long battle with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. over its controversial refund anticipation loan product.

U.S. Bancorp and Fifth Third are eyeing small deals that would make them bigger players in markets they are already in, executives say. It sounds like a good idea for them and others, but will banks stick to it?

The extra $108 million of nonperforming assets is not a problem, BMO's chief Bill Downe says in an interview in discussing the Canadian company's integration of its recent U.S. acquisition.

Sterling Bank in Washington and the FDIC are both pursuing claims against directors and officers of Bank of Clark County, which failed in 2009. Sterling was the first to file, but lawyers believe the FDIC will likely get its tab paid first, if legal fees don't end up taking it all.

Taylor Capital Group Inc. in Chicago is looking to add up to $72 million in common equity that it says would strengthen its capital position and give it the flexibility to pursue growth opportunities.

Park National in Ohio, is selling its most of its Florida operations for a fraction of what it paid for the bank in 2007. Analysts say this closes a bad chapter for the company, which could re-emerge as a buyer in the next few years.

Regulators will eventually release banks from the penalty box of formal enforcement actions. For now, banks can expect informal agreements to serve as a provisional step to freedom.

Stew Leonard Jr., the owner of an eponymous grocery store chain in New York, echoed the groans from today's bank directors.

NBH Holdings Corp. in Boston is the latest bank roll-up group to file for an initial public offering so that its stock can be traded on the open markets.

More banks have sold problem assets to private-equity groups this year, while others unloaded their banks in hopes of unlocking the value in nonperforming assets. Some believe selling bad loans to nonbanks could shore up valuations by removing the challenges of regulatory oversight.

Capitol Bancorp Ltd.'s credit costs are shrinking, but its capital hole is only getting deeper. The $2.5 billion-asset company, which has dual headquarters in Phoenix and Lansing, Mich., reported on Thursday a loss of $22.8 million for the third quarter, a 56% improvement from the loss it reported a year earlier.

Sometimes a quarterly report includes a noteworthy item that happened after the quarter ended. Porter Bancorp Inc. in Louisville, Ky., had three of them.

State regulators closed the $62.4 million-asset Community Bank of Rockmart in Georgia on Thursday, the 88th failure this year.

Four community bankers on the hunt for acquisitions warned prospective sellers that they will have little say in how much they get paid.

Times are pretty good for ag lenders — that's why they are nervous.