A year ago we asked BankThink contributors to make bold predictions about 2012. Here's a look back at their forecasts and the actual outcomes.

A pair of companies has launched services on Twitter that allow users to transact in Bitcoin across the microblogging site. And while Twitter has been selective of what companies facilitate payments in the past, the social networking giant hasn't yet touched these Bitcoin services.

The new year got off to a mixed start for virtual currency, with regulators in Asia clamping down on Bitcoin and gaming company Zynga embracing the emerging payments option.

The finalization of the Volcker Rule signals that banks have reached "the height of the regulatory burden that has been placed on banks" since 2008, according to ConnectOne CEO Frank Sorrentino III. Now bankers just need to figure out how to fully comply with these new rules. Sorrentino, also a board member of the American Bankers Association, discusses his outlook for industry regulation in 2014.

Little Bank (LTLB) in Kinston, N.C., said in a press release Monday that fouder and chairman, Felix Harvey, died on Jan. 2. He was 93.

The Minneapolis company has inked a deal to buy 105 Chicago-area branches of Citizens Financial Group, the U.S. bank owned by Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC, Crain's Chicago Business reported Monday.

The Denver city council passed a proclamation Monday asking that Colorado's legal marijuana businesses be granted access to the nation's banking system.

Cincinnati's First Financial Bancorp amassed a lot of capital thanks to failed-bank deals but took its time deciding what to do with it. Its three recent expansion moves put it in the company of other failed-bank buyers that are shifting to open-bank M&A.

Opus Bank in Irvine, Calif., has expanded its recently created health care unit with the hiring of Randall Boba as first vice president and senior portfolio manager.

Elmira Savings Bank (ESBK) in Elmira, N.Y., has redeemed the remaining $3.5 million of preferred stock issued to the Treasury Department through the Small Business Lending Fund.

The Target Corp. data breach just before the holiday shopping season triggered another round of rhetoric on the merits and shortcomings of chip-based cards. But the breach's direct effect on merchant EMV plans is largely up in the air.

Taiwan's Financial Supervisory Commission is barring Bitcoin ATMs because the country's regulatory body views Bitcoin as a false currency that should not be used by people or banks for payments.

Banking is increasingly a data-driven business. By creating a shared data and analytics utility, community banks could glean valuable insights on their business currently available only to large institutions.

Activist investor PL Capital has taken a $3.5 million stake in Old Point Financial (OPOF) in Hampton, Va.

After Decatur First Bank failed, Judy Turner could have been blacklisted from banking. But she was hired by another bank looking to enter a new market -- and she is making a solid comeback.

A computer glitch at PNC Financial (PNC) last week delayed overnight processing for some customer transactions.

Bank of the West said Monday it will continue to offer interest-only mortgages to borrowers even though such loans are excluded from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's qualified mortgage rule that goes into effect Jan. 10.

First Financial Bancorp (FFBC) in Cincinnati is entering the Fort Wayne, Ind., market with the establishment of commercial and residential mortgage teams there.

Susquehanna Bancshares (SUSQ) in Lititz, Pa., has hired Kevin Burns as chief risk officer and executive vice president.

Macatawa Bank (MCBC) in Holland, Mich., has exchanged all of its outstanding preferred stock for common stock and cash to simplify its capital structure and direct dividends to investors.