Saddle River Valley Bancorp in New Jersey has a new private-equity owner. The $82.8 million-asset company announced Thursday that SRV Holdings Inc. — an investment vehicle of the New York private-equity firm J.C. Flowers & Co. — has bought a controlling interest in Saddle River Valley. Though the companies did not disclose terms, a spokesman said SRV purchased a 50.5% stake, with the expectation that it would invest additional funds in the future.

Hanmi Financial Corp. of Los Angeles said Thursday that its net loss improved in the third quarter and its bank returned to a well-capitalized regulatory standing.

United Community Banks Inc. in Blairsville, Ga., reported a net loss of $239 million for the third quarter, which it attributed primarily to a major goodwill impairment charge.

All that's standing between Flagstar Bancorp Inc.'s past as a troubled mortgage lender and a potential future as a full-service community bank is $1.1 billion of problem loans.

The Federal Reserve Board issued three enforcement actions against community banks and their holding companies on Thursday.

A credit repair operation has agreed to stop making false claims and stop charging upfront fees under a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission.

Cathay General Bancorp of Los Angeles had income of $17.3 million for the third quarter compared with a net loss of $17.7 million a year earlier.

Wintrust Financial Corp. in Lake Forest, Ill., on Wednesday reported earnings of $20.1 million for the third quarter, as interest income rose and its loan-loss provision fell dramatically.

First Place Financial Corp. in Warren, Ohio, has pushed back the release of results for its fiscal first quarter. The $3.1 billion-asset company was expected to release results for the quarter that ended Sept. 30 after the market closed Tuesday, but instead issued a brief press release saying that the report, along with a conference call with investors scheduled for Wednesday, had been postponed.

Third-quarter net income at Trustmark Corp. in Jackson, Miss., rose 1.4% year over year, to nearly $25.9 million. The $9.4 billion-asset Trustmark had aggressively reduced problem loans, resulting in higher chargeoffs yet a lower loan-loss provision.

IMGCAP(1)]

EWING, N.J. – At Ewing High School, a former closet has become a student-run branch for the Blue Devil Branch of Credit Union of New Jersey.

PORTSMOUTH, N.H. – Service CU, a fast-growing $1.8 billion defense credit union, is preparing a proposal to build a 100,000-square-foot corporate headquarters in the city's recently adopted “Gateway District.”

NORTH LIBERTY, Iowa – The North Liberty City Council on Tuesday night voted to approve the purchase and transfer of land for a new University of Iowa Community CU office building, a 100,000-square-foot structure projected to cost $20 million to build.

Nearly two years after hiring CEO Paul Perrault, known for his acquisitiveness, the capital-heavy Brookline announced Wednesday that it would buy another Massachusetts company, First Ipswich Bancorp, for $19.7 million.

PrivateBancorp Inc. in Chicago returned to the black in the third quarter. The $12.5 billion-asset company reported Tuesday that it earned $4.5 million, compared with a loss of $818,000 in the second quarter and a loss of $31.2 million a year earlier.

COLLINSVILLE, Ill. – Scott CU said it plans to break ground early next year on a $12 million, three-story, 51,000-square-foot headquarters in nearby Edwardsville.

Ameris Bank is one of the few homegrown banks in Georgia to have bid successfully on multiple failed banks. That's especially notable given that Ameris, which on Friday made its fourth failed-bank purchase in the past year, has had eight consecutive quarters of net losses largely owing to credit deterioration in real estate-related loans.

Nara Bancorp Inc. of Los Angeles swung to a $4 million profit in the third quarter, a 37% improvement from a year earlier, after selling a pool of problem loans.

After a brief return to profitability in late 2009, Whitney Holding Corp. in New Orleans has reported another losing quarter.