Executives at FirstMerit, PNC and KeyCorp — which have acquired branches in deals in recent years — are seeking to wring substantial cost savings from their brick-and-mortar networks and rely more on high-tech services.

Billhighway, a payments firm that caters to nonprofits, plans to outfit clients with a device that attaches to a smartphone that can be used to receive payments from donors remotely.

Edward DeMarco, acting director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, said Monday the agency will unveil a new representation and warranties model for conventional loans to help minimize risk exposure to lenders.

The $169 million-asset bank will buy two branches from Community South Bank in Parsons, Tenn., the Nashville Business Journal reported Monday. TriStar will assume certain deposits and assets of branches in Columbia Spring Hill from the $497 million-asset Community.

WASHINGTON — The Federal Home Loan Bank of Seattle is treading back into safer waters, after a near shutdown a few years earlier, the Federal Housing Finance Agency said Monday.

Fourteen years and one near-collapse following its merger with Travelers Insurance Group, the company's mix of business and geographic concentrations closely resemble that of the original Citicorp.

Executives at a number of smaller banks see an opportunity in lending to peers despite lingering risks that are driving large and midsize lenders out of the business.

Uncertainty surrounding the economy, the election and other concerns are keeping some potential borrowers "on the sideline," Beth Mooney, the chairman and chief executive at KeyCorp (KEY) said Monday.

Senate Democrats tried Monday to revive a mortgage refinancing bill, reintroducing a slimmed-down version of the measure in the hope of wooing Republicans.

Streamlining and cross-selling initiatives are aimed at creating a simpler company that is more in touch with its customers, Thompson tells investors at Barclays conference.

Monarch Community Bancorp in Coldwater, Mich., is set to start trading its stock over the counter to cut costs.

Capital Bank Financial, a $7.7 billion-asset privately held bank holding company, said Monday it would raise about $250 million via an initial public offering the company first announced in June 2011.

The Republican candidate for Senate says her opponent violated ethics rules when he accepted a loan from the bank in 2008.

Wall Street hopes M&T's $3.7 billion deal for Hudson City will spark a rush of mergers and acquisitions. These five banks are prime takeover targets.

Agency is reviewing exam and rule-writing policies to explore ways to make regulation more efficient for community banks.

Starting Oct. 1, issuers with effective fraud reduction strategies will be eligible to make more money off debit card transactions. To reap the benefits of the Fed's new rule, banks will need to work together.

Lacking the authority to control fellow regulators' data operations, the Office of Financial Research may still play an important risk management role — but only by getting along with other agencies.

Henderson Citizens Bancshares in Texas announced an acquisition that should push its assets above $1 billion.

PreCash, which provides payment services focused on the underbanked, is launching a mobile wallet designed for that audience's unique needs.

Sierra Vista Bank raised about $2.4 million through a stock offering, falling short of a plan to bring in $6.5 million.