Heritage Oaks Bancorp in Paso Robles, Calif., has named longtime California banking executive Simone Lagomarsino as its new president and chief executive officer and as CEO of its subsidiary, Heritage Oaks Bank.

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MGIC Investment Corp. and Radian Group Inc., the two largest U.S. mortgage insurers, are benefiting as their rivals falter.

Foreclosures continue to decimate communities around the nation, with black neighborhoods being the hardest hit. Some pundits and politicians point to federal policies that encouraged homeownership in low- and moderate-income communities, coupled with reckless behavior on the part of greedy homeowners, as the crux of the problem. One example is the statement by Fox News reporter Neil Cavuto that "loaning to minorities and risky borrowers is a disaster." To the contrary, our recent research demonstrates that it is outside investors living in other, predominantly white neighborhoods, not local homeowners, who account for the adverse impact on our nation's black communities.

Bank of America Corp.'s most richly compensated executive, Thomas Montag, may become a future candidate for the top job after a shake-up elevated him to co-chief operating officer at the money-losing lender.

Capitol Federal Financial Inc. in Topeka, Kan., has decided to wait until its one-year anniversary as a 100% stock-owned company before before pursuing a stock buyback program.

Bank of America Corp.'s dismissal Tuesday night of top wealth management executive Sallie Krawcheck may point to a deeper commitment to the Merrill Lynch business.

The Treasury Department said this week it will distribute $4.3 billion from the Small Business Lending Fund, about a third of the funds that banks were seeking from the program and only 14% of the total available.

WASHINGTON — Loan quality improved slightly over the past six weeks while demand was stable to weak, according to a report issued Wednesday by the Federal Reserve Board.

BlueRidge Bank in Frederick, Md., is expanding its operations in the Baltimore metropolitan area by converting its year-old commercial loan office there into a full-service branch.

A ranking of midsize banking companies by funding rates in which SVB Financial places first and First BanCorp places last puts different business models, and local economic conditions, in full view.

MasterCard is urging ATM owners to add hardware for accepting chip-card payments. Those that don't may be faced with a higher level of liability. The plan affects inter-regional transactions on its Maestro network.

TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. isn't interested in acquiring the assets of E-Trade Financial Corp., the head of the U.S. online broker said.

For CrossFirst, the last three years have been filled with perseverance. It spent three years trying to raise capital and 13 months cleaning up a troubled bank before regulators would allow it to merge it with its de novo bank.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said Wednesday it is seeking public input on products and services aimed at members of the military and their families.

NEW YORK — Bank of America Corp.'s new Co-Chief Operating Officer David Darnell on Wednesday told leadership of the bank's wealth management unit, which includes Merrill Lynch, that he plans to maintain the current compensation structure for financial advisers and keep senior management of the business in place.

Associated Banc-Corp in Green Bay, Wis., plans to raise more than $200 million in fresh capital and will use the proceeds to repay the balance of its debt to the Treasury Department's Troubled Asset Relief Program.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency aggressively pushed back Tuesday against claims that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were sophisticated investors that should have done a better job of vetting their purchases of mortgage-backed securities.

A quarterly analysis of credit trends in Canada found that the average total debt for consumers ticked up in the second quarter ended June 30 to $25,603, a $6 increase from the first quarter total, which had marked the first decrease in nearly seven years. The total does not include mortgage debt.

U.S. government-backed firms and agencies should "stop punishing banks" and suspend demands for mortgage repurchases because they are impeding an economic recovery, according to Paul Miller of FBR Capital Markets & Co.