Wintrust Financial Corp.'s shares plunged to a 52-week low Monday after the Lake Forest, Ill., company reported that its third-quarter earnings fell 33% from the year earlier, to $9.9 million. Earnings per share fell 29%, to 40 cents.

Often perceived as a bank for the wealthy, Wilmington Trust Corp. in Delaware has rolled out a loan product targeting the less well-heeled: a short-term loan that maxes out at $500.

Pinnacle Bancshares Inc. in Jasper, Ala., is planning to delist its shares from the American Stock Exchange to trim regulatory and compliance costs.

Irwin Financial Corp. of Columbus, Ind., warned Friday that it expects to report a third-quarter loss of $15 million to $20 million from its discontinued mortgage business.

Bridge Capital Holdings of San Jose reported a double-digit rise in third-quarter profits as a result of strong loan growth.

Harleysville Savings Financial Corp. in Pennsylvania said Friday that net income fell 10%, to $771,000, in its fiscal fourth quarter, which ended Sept. 30. Earnings per share fell 9%, to 20 cents.

In taking $8.9 million of charges over the first two quarters of the year, Fulton Financial Corp. of Lancaster, Pa., had appeared to be moving past its nonprime mortgage troubles.

Heartland Financial USA Inc. of Dubuque, Iowa, which has bought or opened banks in seven states, is planning to enter Minnesota.

Nasdaq Stock Market Inc. once again warned Tennessee Commerce Bancorp Inc. in Franklin that its stock is in danger of being delisted because of possible violations of a rule prohibiting top executives from voting on their own pay raises.

PremierWest Bancorp in Medford, Ore., is expanding in the Sacramento area with a deal to buy the $380 million-asset Stockmans Financial Group in Elk Grove, Calif., for $91.1 million in cash and stock.

The past 10 years have seen an unprecedented wave of branching by financial institutions. With several thousand branches being opened each year at an average cost of more than $2 million, the industry is collectively wagering billions of dollars on the likelihood that consumers will continue to visit physical branches to fulfill their financial needs. But are the investments delivering the returns necessary to justify their capital investments?

WASHOUGAL, Wash. - Officials of Columbia CU will join local dignitaries later this week to break ground on the area's first financial institution built to LEED "Green" standards. The facility, the first of three green branches planned by the $800-million credit union for 2008, will incorporate environmentally friendly aspects and be rated under Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design standards.

RANCHO CUCAMONGA, Calif. - CO-OP Shared Branching, a division of CO-OP Financial Services, reported it has developed "CO-OP Fast Branch," a self-service kiosk that supplies more services than a conventional ATM, including deposits by check (no envelopes, no deposit slips), withdrawals by check, loan payments and advances.

Valley National Bancorp in Wayne, N.J., has reported improved credit quality in the third quarter, along with increases in loans, deposits, and fee income, but its earnings still declined by 17%, to $36.5 million, from the year earlier.

Blaming economic conditions in the Great Lakes region, Capitol Bancorp Ltd. in Lansing, Mich., said Thursday that its third-quarter earnings fell 44% from the year earlier, to $6 million.

Corus Bancshares Inc. in Chicago said Thursday that third-quarter profit fell by 31%, to $35.5 million, from the year earlier as the condominium market cooled.

Provident Bankshares Corp. in Baltimore on Thursday attributed a 22% drop in its third-quarter net income, to $16 million, to an increase in its loan-loss provision and a reduction in total revenues.

Typically it is a tough sell to get prospective depositors who are not familiar with Central Bank of Kansas City to consider parking their money in the $140 million-asset Missouri community development financial institution — particularly those who would deposit more than $100,000.

Umpqua Holdings Corp. in Portland, Ore., announced Thursday that it had earned $13.2 million in the third quarter, down 42% from a year earlier.