Home BancShares, in Conway, Ark., has agreed to pay $1.4 million for Premier Bank in Tallahassee, Fla. Premier's parent is in bankruptcy proceedings, which could spur rival bids for Premier.

Federal regulators issued proposals on Wednesday that would make home appraisals essentially compulsory in certain cases before banks can approve a loan.

The rules for mortgage servicing were written primarily for the largest players, but it is the smaller ones that will have the hardest time absorbing the costs.

EverBank's announcement this week that it has set up a division to lend to golf equipment makers is the latest example of a bank trying to distinguish itself as a niche lender. Whether banks acquire units or start them from scratch - usually by wooing away rivals' lending teams - the objective is the same: Offset weak demand for traditional business and consumer loans.

The market for mortgage securities backed by the U.S. government is the smallest in three years, bolstering the value of the debt and potentially expanding the effects of any new buying by the Federal Reserve.

Two years after converting the preferred shares it owned in Sterling Financial (STSA) into common stock, the Treasury Department is now looking to sell those shares on the open market.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have expanded efforts to get refunds on soured mortgages, boosting the cost of faulty home loans and foreclosures at the biggest U.S. banks since 2007 to at least $84 billion.

We learn lessons after every financial crisis. But it doesn't stop the next one from happening.

United Community Financial (UCFC) in Youngstown, Ohio, reported its third straight quarter of profitability as asset quality improved.

BBX Capital (BBX) posted a second-quarter net loss of $12.3 million for its last reporting period with BankAtlantic.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel on Tuesday shot down the idea of using eminent domain to seize underwater mortgages, the Chicago Tribune reported.

Mackinac Financial (MFNC) in Manistique, Mich., has raised roughly $11.6 million through a rights offering and the sale of common stock to an investor.

Wells Fargo will pay more than $6.5 million to settle claims with the Securities and Exchange Commission that its brokerage firm and a former executive did not properly disclose risks related to investments tied to mortgage-backed securities.

The country's fastest-growing servicer reports a solid second-quarter profit, strong operational metrics and plans for an even more ambitious expansion.

Bank of America announced the nationwide launch of its online rewards system, BankAmeriDeals.

Lawmakers have set $10 billion in assets as a dividing line between small and large banks for regulatory purposes. That's left bankers at Trustmark's Gerard Host and other institutions that are approaching the cutoff with a choice: Deliberately limit their size or pursue acquisitions to solidly cross the threshold.

The smattering of data showing an upsurge in lending activity now includes the statistical reporting required under the Community Reinvestment Act.

National Penn Bancshares in Boyertown, Pa., has completed restructuring $400 million of fixed-rate borrowings with the Federal Home Loan Bank of Pittsburgh to reduce interest expense and expand its net interest margin.

Money funds and non-deposit-taking consumer lenders should be chartered as limited purpose banks by the Fed and CFPB, respectively. This will reduce systemic risk, improve consistency and efficiency, and protect consumers.

Four years after filing the largest bankruptcy in U.S. history amid soured real estate bets, Lehman Brothers is still in the property business, wagering it can recover about $12.9 billion from mortgages and assets around the globe.